Maringa / M, Prof Paul / P Mwangi / M

Sampling Guide for the City of Nairobi Maringa / M, Prof Paul / P Mwangi / M

Publisher Marketing: The City of Nairobi is now clearly a cosmopolitan urban entity with considerable diversity and a clear socio-spatial structure. Inquiry in such an environment must embrace a well thought out sampling procedure, also termed sampling technique or design. It must take score of the city's unique social function and the manner in which it is mapped in space. It should be guided by a very definite plan for obtaining a representative part termed sample from the given finite aggregate or totality otherwise termed population or universe, which in this case is the city of Nairobi. On the basis of the sample, judgement, inference, or generalisation about the finite aggregate, the city of Nairobi can then be entered. This procedure must be fashioned in such a way as to ensure a relatively small sampling error, while keeping good control of the systematic bias. A field survey would thereafter be conducted on the basis of the selected sample and may be described as a sample survey. In order to describe an effective sample design it is necessary that sequential consideration be given to the sample universe, nature of the sampling units, sample size, and eventually, initiatives to diminish systematic bias as well as sampling error. This discussion suggests exactly such a contextually anchored array of homogeneous constructs that are anchored on present socio-spatial realities of the city. It provides an ideal guide for field setting inquiry, which is keen to produce incisive, valid and reliable results.