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Academic English & Research vocabulary · Research Design

Pilot study

Meaning in academic english & research, with examples

nounCommon term

In academic english & research, pilot study means: A small trial version of a study, carried out before the main study to test the instruments, procedures and timing.

In Turkish: pilot çalışma, ön uygulama, ön deneme

How it is used

Researchers pilot a questionnaire to find unclear items, check how long it takes and estimate response rates. Pilot is also a verb: 'The questionnaire was piloted with 30 students.' Pilot data are usually not included in the main analysis.

Example sentences

  1. A pilot study with 25 teachers showed that two items were confusing.

  2. We revised the interview questions after the pilot study.

Common collocations

  • conduct a pilot study
  • pilot a questionnaire
  • pilot data
  • results of the pilot study
  • questionnaireA set of written questions given to many people to collect information about their opinions, experiences or behavior.
  • reliabilityThe extent to which a measurement or method gives consistent results when it is repeated or used by different researchers.
  • methodologyThe overall approach and reasoning behind how a study is done, including the choice of design, methods, data and analysis, and the reasons for those choices.
  • surveyA research method that collects information from many people, usually by asking the same set of questions in a questionnaire or interview.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Research Design

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