Question

A market research firm wants to study consumer preferences for a new brand of breakfast cereal.

Determine which of the following study designs would allow the researchers to generalize the results to the broader population of interest. Select the two correct answers.

(1 point)
Responses

surveying randomly selected households in the target market area, including questions about demographics, breakfast habits, and preferences for cereal flavors and ingredients
surveying randomly selected households in the target market area, including questions about demographics, breakfast habits, and preferences for cereal flavors and ingredients

conducting taste tests with employees of the cereal company
conducting taste tests with employees of the cereal company

partnering with a national grocery store chain to analyze sales data for the new cereal across different regions and demographics
partnering with a national grocery store chain to analyze sales data for the new cereal across different regions and demographics

offering free samples of the cereal at a high-end grocery store and surveying customers who try it
offering free samples of the cereal at a high-end grocery store and surveying customers who try it
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Answer 1

Correct answers:
- Surveying randomly selected households in the target market area, including questions about demographics, breakfast habits, and preferences for cereal flavors and ingredients.
- Partnering with a national grocery store chain to analyze sales data for the new cereal across different regions and demographics.

Why: Random sampling yields a representative sample that supports generalization. National sales data cover diverse regions and customer groups and—if the chain’s customer base reflects the broader market—can be generalized to the population. The other two (employee taste tests and free samples at a high‑end store) are convenience or biased samples and not broadly generalizable.