n.the process of selecting or collecting an oversample or a set of oversamples of recordsHindus, Hammett, and Hobson 1980, 44Originally, we had planned to stratify the criminal sample further by oversampling certain crimes, such as murder and rape, that we intuitively felt would have more interesting files.Norris 1995, 24Oversampling for archival retention is recommended when 1) the distribution of the inmate population across a significant variable is such that an insufficient number of cases would be retained in the statistical sample to permit future research, 2) future research on a specific subpopulation is likely, and 3) case files that would be oversampled can be readily identified.Boles 2005, 153Oversampling, or subsampling, two terms for the same practice, is the method used to assure researchers that a subgroup within a particular population is sufficiently represented in a statistically valid sample so that that statistically valid conclusions can be drawn about the subgroup as well as about the great population.
