pilot study
A small-scale research project that collects data from respondents similar to those to be used in the full study.
[Zikmund]
The ideal step to conducting a pilot study is once the researcher has developed a questionnaire and before engaging in a full-scale data collection.
The questionnaire used should be a replica of the actual study proposed by the research scholar.
Some best practices for doing the Pilot Study
a) Define the objectives of doing the point study
b) Sample size for pilot study: There is no formula to calculate the sample size for the pilot study. A thumb rule is to use a sample size of 30-50 respondents or 10% to 20% of the sample size for a full-scale study
c) Analyse the results of the Pilot Study: face validity (of questionnaire before doing pilot study), missing data, check for normality, reliability (Cronbach Alpha) of each construct, issues with back-translation of the questions, negative questions to be reverse scored.
Additional details will be posted in my LinkedIn post.