‘Sampling Cases’ means

Concept

In research methods, a case is the bounded unit or instance selected for study. A case need not be only a person; it may also be an organization, document, newspaper, broadcast programme, event, or another unit that can be examined.

Application

The phrase “sampling cases” therefore refers to selecting the units that will constitute the study. People, newspapers, and television programmes are all examples of such selectable study units.

Contrast

• Using a sampling frame describes the mechanism or list from which units are selected.

• Identifying suitable people describes participant screening or purposive recruitment and is limited to persons.

• A researcher’s briefcase uses the ordinary physical-object meaning of the word “case.”

• Selecting people, newspapers, and television programmes covers different kinds of cases that research can sample.

Cross-check

People, newspapers, and television programmes can each be bounded and treated as units of analysis, which matches the research-methods meaning of cases.

Therefore, “sampling cases” means sampling people, newspapers, television programmes, and similar study units.