The Snowball Sampling Strategy in the Field of Social Sciences. Contexts and Considerations.
Contexts and considerations
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12775/PBE.2023.029Abstract
This article discusses the snowball sampling strategy that has been successfully used for decades in research in the field of social sciences. The focus of this article is only on the application of the strategy in qualitative research, although it can be employed in quantitative research too. Despite its limitations and debatable applicability in some cases, it is methodologically justified and considered very effective in reaching hard-to-reach populations. Referring to the methodological literature, research in which it was adopted and our own experience, we reflect on the contexts and controversies that arise around its implementation.
References
Atkinson, R., & Flint, J. (2001). Accessing Hidden and Hard-To-Reach Populations: Snowball Research Strategies (Social Research Update No. 33). Guildford: Department of Sociology, University of Surrey.
Atkinson, R., & Flint, J. (2003). Sampling, Snowball: Accessing Hidden and Hard-To-Reach Populations. In: R.L. Miller, & J. Brewer (Eds.), The A-Z of Social Research (pp. 275–280). SAGE Publications, Ltd.
Becker, H.S. (1963). Outsiders: Studies in the Sociology of Deviance. New York: Macmillan.
Berg, S. (1988). Snowball Sampling. In: N.L. Johnson, & S. Kotz (Eds.), Encyclopaedia of Statistical Sciences. Vol. 8. Chichester: John Wiley and Sons.
Bhardwaj, P. (2019). Types of Sampling in Research. Journal of the Practice of Cardiovascular Sciences, 5, 157–163, doi: 10.4103/jpcs.jpcs_62_19.
Biernacki, P., & Waldorf, D. (1981). Snowball Sampling: Problems and Techniques of Chain Referral Sampling. Sociological Methods and Research, 10(2), 141–163.
Boroń, A., & Gromkowska-Melosik, A. (2022). Ukraińskie uchodźczynie WOJENNE. Tożsamość, trauma, nadzieja [Ukrainian Female War Refugees. Identity, Trauma, Hope]. Kraków: Impuls.
Browne, K. (2005). Snowball Sampling: Using Social Networks To Research Non‐Heterosexual Women. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 8(1), 47–60, doi: 10.1080/1364557032000081663.
Burke Johnson, R. (1997). Examining the Validity Structure of Qualitative Research. Education, 18(2), 282–292.
Chambers, M., Bliss, K., & Rambur, B. (2020). Recruiting Research Participants Via Traditional Snowball vs Facebook Advertisements and a Website. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 42, 10, 846–851, doi: 10.1177/0193945920904445.
Cohen, N., & Arieli, T. (2011). Field Research in Conflict Environments: Methodological Challenges and Snowball Sampling. Journal of Peace Research, 48(4), 423–435, doi: 10.1177/0022343311405698.
Creswell, J.W. (2013). Qualitative Inquiry & Research Design. Sage: Thousand Oaks.
Curtis, S., Gesler, W., Smith, G., & Washburn, S. (2000). Approaches To Sampling and Case Selection in Qualitative Research: Examples in the Geography of Health. Social Science and Medicine, 50(7–8), 1001–1014.
Denzin, N.K., & Lincoln, Y.S. (2005). The Discipline and Practice of Qualitative Research. In: N.K. Denzin, & Y.S. Lincoln (Eds.), The Sage Handbook of Qualitative Research (pp. 1–32), 3rd ed. Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.
Dowsett, G., Bollen, J., Mcinnes, D., Couch, M., & Edwards, B. (2001). HIV/AIDS and Constructs of Gay Community: Researching Educational Practice within Community-Based Health Promotion for Gay Men. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 4(3), 205–223, doi: 10.1080/13645570121259.
Dragan, I.M., & Isaic-Maniu, A. (2013). Snowball Sampling Completion. Journal of Studies in Social Sciences, 5(2), 160–177.
Farquhar, C. (1999). Are Focus Groups Suitable for ‘Sensitive’ Topics? In: R. Barbour, & J. Kitzinger (Eds.), Developing Focus Group Research: Politics, Theory and Practice (pp. 46–63). London: Sage.
Flick, U. (2018). An Introduction to Qualitative Research. London: Sage. Geddes, A., Parker, C., & Scott, S. (2018). When the Snowball Fails To Roll and the Use of ‘Horizontal’ Networking in Qualitative Social Research. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 21(3), 347–358.
Glaser, B., & Strauss, A. (1967). The Discovery of Grounded Theory. Hawthorne, NY: Aldine Publishing Company.
Griffiths, P., Gossop, M., Powis, B., & Strang, J. (1993). Researching Hidden Populations of Drug Users by Privileged Access Interviewers: Methodological and Practical Issues. Addiction, 88, 1617–1626.
Guest, G., Bunce, A., & Johnson, L. (2006). ‘How Many Interviews Are Enough? An Experiment with Data Saturation and Variability.’ Field Methods, 18, 59–82.
Guetterman, T.C. (2015). Descriptions of Sampling Practices within Five Approaches To Qualitative Research in Education and the Health Sciences. Forum: Qualitative Sozialforschung/ Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 16(2).
Head, E. (2009). The Ethics and Implications of Paying Participants in Qualitative Research. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 12, 335–344, doi: 10.1080/13645570802246724.
Heckathorn, D.D. (2011). Comment: Snowball Versus Respondent-Driven Sampling. Sociological Methodology, 41(1), 355–366, doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9531.2011.01244.x.
Johnston, L.G. (2014). Sampling Migrants: How Respondent Driven Sampling Works. In: G. Tyldum, & L.G. Johnston (Eds.), Applying Respondent Driven Sampling To Migrant Populations: Lessons from the Field. London: Palgrave Macmillan UK.
Kirchherr, J., & Charles, K. (2018). Enhancing the Sample Diversity of Snowball Samples: Recommendations from a Research Project on Anti-Dam Movements in Southeast Asia. PLoS ONE, 13(8): e0201710, doi: 10.1371/journal. pone.0201710.
Lindesmith, A.R. (1968). Addiction and Opiates. Chicago: Aldine. Naderifar, M., Goli, H., & Ghaljaie, F. (2017). Snowball Sampling: A Purposeful Method of Sampling in Qualitative Research. Strides Dev Med Educ, 14(3), 1–6, doi: 10.5812/sdme.67670.
Noy, C. (2008). Sampling Knowledge: The Hermeneutics of Snowball Sampling in Qualitative Research. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 11, 327–344.
Parker, C., Scott, S., & Geddes, A. (2019). Snowball Sampling. In: P. Atkinson, S. Delamont, A. Cernat, J.W. Sakshaug, & R.A. Williams (Eds.), SAGE Research Methods Foundations. SAGE Publication Ltd., doi: 10.4135/9781526421036831710.
Robinson, O.C. (2014). Sampling in Interview-Based Qualitative Research: A Theoretical and Practical Guide. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 11(1), 25–41, doi: 10.1080/14780887.2013.801543.
Saunders, M.N., & Townsend, K. (2016). Reporting and Justifying the Number of Interview Participants in Organization and Workplace Research. British Journal of Management, 27(4), 836–852, doi: 10.1111/1467-8551.12182.
Seymour, S., & Freeman, H.E. (1988). The Use of Network Sampling for Locating the Seriously III. Medical Care, 26(10), 992–999.
Shewan, D., & Dalgarno, P. (2005). Evidence for Controlled Heroin Use? Low Levels of Negative Health and Social Outcomes Among Non-Treatment Heroin Users in Glasgow (Scotland). British Journal of Health Psychology, 10, 33–48, doi: 10.1348/135910704X14582.
Tongco, D.C. (2007). Purposive Sampling as a Tool for Informant Selection. Ethnobotany Research and Applications, 5, 147–158, doi: 10.17348/era.5.0.147-158.
Vervaeke, H.K.E., Korf, D.J., Benschop, A., & van den Brink, W. (2007). How To Find Future Ecstasy-Users: Targeted and Snowball Sampling in an Ethically Sensitive Context. Addictive Behaviors, 32, 1705–1713, doi: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2006.11.008.
Vissak, T. (2010). Recommendation for Using the Case Study Method in International Business Research. The Qualitative Report, 15(2), 370–388, doi: 10.46743/2160-3715/2010.1156.
Walsham, G. (1995). The Emergence of Interpretivism in IS Research. Information Systems Research, 6 (4), 376–394.
Waters, J. (2015). Snowball Sampling: A Cautionary Tale Involving a Study of Older Drug Users. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 18(4), 367–380, doi: 10.1080/13645579.2014.953316.
Wilmot, A. (2005). Designing Sampling Strategies for Qualitative Social Research: With Particular Reference To the Office For National Statistics’ Qualitative Respondent Register. Retrieved 26 November 2023 from: https://wwwn.cdc.gov/qbank/Quest/2005/Paper23.pdf.
Woodley, X., & Lockard, M. (2016). Womanism and Snowball Sampling: Engaging Marginalized Populations in Holistic Research. The Qualitative Report, 21, 2, 321–329, doi: 10.46743/2160-3715/2016.2198.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Marcin Gierczyk, Agnieszka Gromkowska-Melosik, Sam Sam Scott, Charlotte Parker
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Stats
Number of views and downloads: 1390
Number of citations: 0
