---
url: "https://questionstar.com/principles-of-survey-research/chapter-4/slide-127.html"
title: "Snowball Sampling also chain sampling"
type: "lehrbuch-slide"
chapter: 4
chapterTitle: "Sampling"
slide: 127
---

# Snowball Sampling also chain sampling

*Technique 4*

![Snowball rolling down a slope and growing bigger](/principles-of-survey-research/media/schneeball.jpg)

1 The first group of respondents is (usually) selected randomly.

2 After the interview, they name additional people from the target group.

3 Subsequent respondents are selected through referrals.

Good for **locating rare characteristics** : hard-to-reach respondents (public officials, executives, homeless people, drug addicts), rarely occurring traits, buyer-seller pairs in industrial research.

---

*Slide 127 of 274 · Chapter 4: Sampling · Principles of Survey Research · Dr. Paul Marx*