Finding Your Population
What is your research question? Please make sure to include any changes to the question
based on feedback that you have received.
My research question is “What are the most used CAM methods among adults in the Tyler
area”
Based on your feedback I was able to clarify my question and make it more specific. Before, my
question was too broad to address in one study. Now I’ll be able to conduct a study.
Describe the target population for your study. What kinds of people does it make sense to ask
to complete your survey (ex: young parents, store customers, community members who are
adults, etc.). Give as much detail as possible.
Anyone above the age of 18. One component of my research will to be collecting categorical
data. I’ll ask a few basic questions about the individual’s gender and age group (18-24, 25-34
etc.) to see if there are differences between groups in the types of CAM usage.
How might you get access to this population to sample it? Explain what method of
distribution would make the most sense, whose permission you would need, etc. (email link,
paper and pencil, social media, etc.)
I believe there needs to be a combination of different methods in order for the study to be
effective. For example, if I only did a social media survey the older population would be likely
be under represented. On the other hand, sending surveys through email might see younger
populations under represented. It makes sense to do both an email and social media survey in
order to get a more complete picture of Tyler’s population.
What ethical issues are important to consider when you access this population (think about
the issues discussed in the lecture)?
Asking people’s gender and age group might make some people uncomfortable. It’s important
to make sure people understand why those questions are in the survey and that their personal
information will not be collected or linked with their answers in anyway.
It’s also important to make people aware of what the study is about, how long the survey will
take to complete and that their answers will be completely anonymous before they begin the
survey.