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2.3 Conducting a Pilot Test

Conducting basic pretests or a small pilot project can help identify any issues with workflows or systems before actual data collection begins. This often overlooked step can help eliminate the potential for loss or corruption of research data.

Benefits of a pilot test

  • Assess cost before data collection/acquisition begins
  • Any problems or bugs will be addressed in terms of
    • Data entry and documentation
    • Analysis systems
    • Taxonomies and other file naming conventions
    • Issues with a codebook if one is to be created
  • These tests can be brief so the cost of the pretest is very minimal, in relation to the cost of dealing with these potential issues on a larger scale later in the research process.
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Maintained by: Erin O'Meara, erino@uoregon.edu
Last Modified: 11/10/2007