This textbook is for graduate students and research workers in social statistics
and related subject areas. It follows a novel curriculum developed around the
basic statistical activities: sampling, measurement and inference. The monograph
aims to prepare the reader for the career of an independent social statistician
and to serve as a reference for methods, ideas for and ways of studying of human
populations. Elementary linear algebra and calculus are prerequisites, although
the exposition is quite forgiving. Familiarity with statistical software at the
outset is an advantage, but it can be developed while reading the first few
chapters.