Sampling and Retention of Underrepresented Groups

Defining an “Underrepresented Group”

Membership in an underrepresented group might vary depending on the nature of the discipline, the general phenomena being explored, and the particular research study. For example, a review of the psychology literature published by the main journals of American Psychology Association (APA) found U.S. dominance both in authorship and in the sample demographics, thus building an understanding of psychology based on only 5% of the world population and neglecting 95%. Ethnic minorities are overrepresented among studies of the poor and are underrepresented in studies of middle to upper socioeconomic statuses. Historically, studies of risk to the well-being of children and families have not represented the affluent. Studies that focus on a particular racial or ethnic minority group might overly rely on a convenience sample, which might introduce a bias in the sample and perhaps limit the ability to identify the main characteristics and perspectives of the population. An underrepresented group in research, therefore, is defined by the previous lack of representation of the group in research generally or with respect to the particular outcomes and phenomena explored in a given study. Under-represented groups might include the following: particular racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups that might have been represented in the research literature, but perhaps without sufficient representation to reflect the full range of the population (e.g., cultural variation within ethnic groups, low-performing students of high socioeconomic status, or high-performing students of low socioeconomic status); studies that sample exclusively from an underrepresented groups (e.g., emotional-social adjustment of Native American youth with high academic achievement or of Asian-American youth with low achievement); or studies that sample special protected or vulnerable populations such as youth, persons not familiar with English, or persons associated with a socially undesirable characteristic (e.g., homeless, criminal record, or HIV positive). Through a literature review and preliminary fieldwork, researchers should identify the range of the target sample population.

Strategies to Promote Retention and Engagement of Underrepresented Groups

Strategies to promote the retention and engagement of underrepresented groups include the composition of a diverse research team, prefieldwork and entering into the community, development of measures and piloting the protocol, recruitment and sample maintenance, and steps taken subsequent to data collection. These strategies might be adapted to support various research designs (e.g., qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods) and might support studies that target underrepresented groups exclusively or that aim to secure a relatively higher percentage or variation of underrepresented groups in a general research project.

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