Question

Determine whether the following is an example of a sampling error or a non sampling error.

A researcher studied brother-sister pairs to see if there is a difference in IQ scores. Although the researcher made no mistakes in collecting the data, the findings showed that there was a difference when in reality there is no difference in IQ based on gender.

Sampling Error

Non Sampling Error

Answer 1

Explanation:

Sampling error occurs when the sample used by the research is not a representative of the whole population. While a non sampling error occurs during data sampling due to other factors than taking a sample.

Since there were no errors in collecting the data during day sampling, and it is safe to assume that the sample taken was a representative of the population, we can conclude that this is a non sampling error that was due to other factors than taking a sample.