Page 440 - Encyclopedia of Nursing Research

PIlOT STUDY n 407

trends in physiological nursing research collection. Pilot work can be used to develop,
include the use of molecular biomarkers to test, or to refine a study protocol, including
and cellular models. Genomic science holds the treatment or intervention to be used in an P
great promise for identifying restoration of experimental or quasi-experimental study.
health. The complexity and interactive pro- Sufficient pilot work is necessary to support
cesses of physiology are ideally suited to the efficacy of an intervention prior to pro-
multidisciplinary research teams. Biobanks posal submission for a large-scale interven-
will provide new and unique opportu- tion study. During a pilot study, extraneous
nities for physiological nursing research. variables that had not been considered in the
Physiologic research continues to build design may become apparent, and methods
nursing science and, ultimately, improve to control for them can be introduced when
nursing care. the larger study is designed.
Pilot work also allows the development
Chris Winkelman or refinement of data collection instruments,
including questionnaires and equipment. The
performance of instruments with a particu-
lar sample under specific conditions also can
Pilot stuDy be evaluated in the pilot project. When col-
lecting quantitative data, the reliability and
validity of instruments and the ease of oper-
A pilot study is a smaller version of a pro- ation and administration can be evaluated
posed or planned study that is conducted to prior to data collection in a large-scale study.
refine the methodology for a larger study. A This is an important step whether the data
pilot study uses subjects, settings, and meth- collection instruments are interview sched-
ods of data collection and data analysis simi- ules, questionnaires, computers databases,
lar to those of a larger study. or equipment to gather biophysical data. For
It is recommended that all large-scale example, during pilot work, questionnaires
studies have either pilot work or other pre- can be evaluated for clarity of instructions,
liminary work as evidence of feasibility of the wording of questions, reading level, and time
project and to demonstrate the competence required for completion. For qualitative stud-
of the investigator with the area of study. ies, pilot work may be important for gaining
Feasibility issues that might be addressed in a experience in interacting with the sample
pilot study include the availability of subjects and with aspects of data collection, coding,
and estimating the time required for recruit- and analysis.
ment of subjects, the conduct of the investi- The results of a pilot study are likely to
gation, and the cost of the study. Particularly be significant for the larger proposed study. If
when planning studies with populations that the pilot study is of sufficient size, estimates
may not be easily available or accessible, a about the relationships between variables
pilot study is an opportunity to develop or and of effect sizes can be made. This is essen-
refine sampling methods and to evaluate the tial not only for statistical power analysis but
representativeness of a sample. for a better understanding of the phenom-
Preliminary work in the form of a pilot ena under study. Pilot studies often provide
study provides an opportunity to identify important insights into the problem being
problems with many aspects of study design. investigated and may lead to reconceptual-
One important design issue that can be eval- ization of the problem or refinement of the
uated during the pilot work is determining research questions.
the number of data collection points and
the optimal time between phases of data Carol M. Musil