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Weighted Sample

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Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine

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Definition

In a weighted sample, not all sample observations contribute equally to the estimate of a population parameter.

Investigators are often interested in estimating quantities (such as means, counts, or proportions) in a population by using a representative sample selected from that population. Probability samples, defined as samples in which each sampling unit has a known, nonzero probability of selection based on the sampling design, allow investigators to compute estimates of population parameters. The most straightforward type of probability sampling design, a simple random sample (SRS), is a selection method in which each sample has the same probability of being selected. In an SRS, the probability of selection of each member in the population is the same.

The estimation of the population mean is straightforward for the SRS design. Let n = sample size, N = population size. Also, let {Y1, …, YN} be the population values and {y1, …, yn} be the sample values. We define the...

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References and Further Reading

  • Foreman, E. K. (1991). Survey sampling principles. New York: M. Dekker.

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  • Kish, L. (1965). Survey sampling. New York: Wiley.

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  • Korn, E. L., & Graubard, B. I. (1995). Examples of differing weighted and unweighted estimates from a sample survey. The American Statistician, 49(3), 291–295.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biostatistics, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA

    Jane Monaco

Authors
  1. Jane Monaco
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Correspondence to Jane Monaco .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA

    Marc Gellman

Section Editor information

  1. Clinical Communications, Quintiles, Durham, NC, USA

    J. Rick Turner

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Monaco, J. (2019). Weighted Sample. In: Gellman, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6439-6_1082-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6439-6_1082-2

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  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-6439-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-6439-6

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