In statistics, a defined group of people from which one’s sample of representative subjects are drawn.

Example: A researcher uses a representative sample (both genders, and a variety of ages, races, income levels) of 100 Americans to test the effects of a smoking cessation program. In this case, the population from which the sample is drawn would be “all Americans”.

    Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 8 Mar 2009