Sequential Sampling

For survey sampling applications, the term sequential sampling describes any method of sampling that reads an ordered frame of N sampling units and selects the sample with specified probabilities or specified expectations. Sequential sampling methods are particularly well suited when applied with computers. They can also be applied for selecting samples of a population resulting from some other process: for example, cars coming off an assembly line, patients arriving at a clinic, or voters exiting the polls. Examples of sequential sampling schemes discussed in this entry include simple random sampling, systematic sampling, and probability proportional to size (PPS) sequential sampling.