Snowball sampling chain referral – UGC NET Question

Snowball sampling is a non-probability method used especially when the population is hard to identify or reach, such as hidden or stigmatised groups. In this technique, the researcher first accesses a few participants and then asks them to refer others they know who fit the criteria. The sample thus grows like a snowball rolling and accumulating more snow. Because the stem describes existing participants recruiting future participants from their acquaintances, it refers to snowball sampling.

Option A:
Quota sampling involves setting quotas for specific subgroups in the population and then selecting participants, often conveniently, until each quota is filled. It does not rely on participants recruiting one another. Therefore, quota sampling does not match the chain-referral process described in the stem.

Option B:
Convenience sampling selects participants who are easily available to the researcher, such as students in a particular class or people in a nearby location. It does not depend on referrals from current participants and lacks the network-based growth characteristic of snowball sampling. Hence, convenience is not the correct answer.

Option C:
Purposive sampling is based on the researcher’s judgment about which cases are most informative, not primarily on referrals from existing participants. Although snowball sampling may start with purposively chosen initial participants, its defining feature is the subsequent chain referral. Thus, purposive sampling is not what the stem is describing.

Option D:
Snowball sampling is particularly useful for accessing populations that lack complete sampling frames, as participants’ social networks become pathways into otherwise inaccessible communities. This network-based, participant-recruited expansion is exactly what the question outlines, confirming snowball as the appropriate completion.