Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-jn8rn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-28T00:45:57.413Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Snowball Sampling and Facebook: How Social Media Can Help Access Hard-to-Reach Populations

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 May 2021

Tomas Dosek Open the ORCID record for Tomas Dosek [Opens in a new window]
Tomas Dosek*
Affiliation:
Pontifical Catholic University of Peru
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The snowball sampling method (SSM) is one of the most widely used methods to collect information about hard-to-reach populations and in low-information contexts. This article argues that SSM can be enhanced by the use of Facebook in at least three ways. This social-networking site helps to address some of the inherent limitations of SSM by learning about local contexts and identifying principal political actors, by gathering background information about and establishing contact with them, and by triangulating information they provide and reaching out to additional key informants. Thus, this article shows how Facebook can provide leverage in overcoming the problem of biased samples and offers concrete empirical illustrations from research on local politics in Latin American countries.

Type
Article
Information
PS: Political Science & Politics , Volume 54 , Issue 4 , October 2021 , pp. 651 - 655
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the American Political Science Association

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

América Economía. 2020. “Más del 70% de las personas en América Latina utilizan Facebook diariamente.” March 12. https://tecno.americaeconomia.com/articulos/mas-del-70-de-las-personas-en-america-latina-utiliza-facebook-diariamente.Google Scholar
Atkinson, Rowland, and Flint, John. 2001. “Accessing Hidden and Hard-to-Reach Populations: Snowball Research Strategies.” Social Research Update No. 33 . Guildford, UK: University of Surrey, Department of Sociology.Google Scholar
Baltar, Fabiola, and Brunet, Ignasi. 2012. “Social Research 2.0: Virtual Snowball Sampling Method Using Facebook.” Internet Research 22 (1): 57–74. https://doi.org/10.1108/10662241211199960.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Berry, Jeffrey M. 2002. “Validity and Reliability Issues in Elite Interviewing.” PS: Political Science & Politics 35 (4): 679–82. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1049096502001166.Google Scholar
Cohen, Nissim, and Arieli, Tamar. 2011. “Field Research in Conflict Environments: Methodological Challenges and Snowball Sampling.” Journal of Peace Research 48 (4): 423–35. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0022343311405698.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Côté, Isabelle. 2013. “Fieldwork in the Era of Social Media: Opportunities and Challenges.” PS: Political Science & Politics 46 (3): 615–19. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1049096513000565.Google Scholar
Creswell, John W. 2005. Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research, second edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.Google Scholar
Duarte, Fernando. 2019. “Los países en los que la gente pasa más tiempo en las redes sociales (y los líderes en América Latina).” BBC Mundo, September 9. www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-49634612.Google Scholar
Giraudy, Agustina, Moncada, Eduardo, and Snyder, Richard (eds.). 2019. Inside Countries: Subnational Research in Comparative Politics. New York: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kirchherr, Julian, and Charles, Katrina. 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. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0201710.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Leech, Beth L. 2002. “Asking Questions: Techniques for Semi-Structured Interviews.” PS: Political Science & Politics 35 (4): 665–68. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1049096502001129.Google Scholar
Lennox Esselment, Anna, and Marland, Alex. 2019. “Want to Interview a Politician? Ways to Prepare for Digital Vetting by Political Staffers.” PS: Political Science & Politics 52 (4): 696–700. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1049096519000921.Google Scholar
Tansey, Oisín. 2007. “Process Tracing and Elite Interviewing: A Case for Non-Probability Sampling.” PS: Political Science & Politics 40 (4): 765–72. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1049096507071211.Google Scholar