A company has 500 employees and would like to select a simple random sample of 25 of them for a study. Of the following, only one fits the definition of a simple random sample. Which one is it?
A) Randomly choose one person whose last name begins with A, one with B, and so on, omitting X because it's least common.
B) Randomly choose 25 pages from the employee directory, then choose the first person listed on each of those pages.
C) Number the employees from 1 to 500 based on seniority and randomly choose one person from the first 20 names on the list, one from the next 20, and so on.
D) Number the employees from 1 to 500 in random order and choose the first 25 names on the list.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

A simple random sample requires that every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected. Option D achieves this by numbering the employees in random order and then selecting the first 25, ensuring each employee had an equal chance of being included in the sample. Options A, B, and C introduce biases by selecting based on last names, directory pages, or seniority groups, respectively.

A Company Has 500 Employees and Would Like to Select