Conduct a Pilot Study

This task involves a multi-step process to address the underlying research or evaluation question of your eventual survey. Please follow the directions below

1. Set up a minimum of three pilot studies for your survey. If possible, these should consist of the following types of reviewers:

• Potential participant. An individual who exists in your sampling frame. This participant must be removed from your population/sample after agreeing to pilot your survey.

• Content expert. A person who is not in your sampling frame but has in-depth knowledge regarding the content tested within the survey. Ideally this should be someone who also understands your research/evaluation question and the purpose/measures associated with each item.

• External reviewer. This volunteer may be a content expert but should have no connection to your study or its purpose, rather more importantly the person should have some knowledge of proper and effective survey design. This individual serves as a check on the structure and flow of your instrument.
  
  It may be difficult to locate and have all three types of people agree to assess your survey and provide feedback, please do the best you can. While not mandatory, it is strongly suggested that you conduct at least two rounds of the pilot study.

2. Volunteers should be instructed to be highly critical. While each individual serves a specific function, they should not limit their feedback to that assigned role. With that said, they should not be informed of the type of reviewer as not to potentially bias their feedback.

3. Synthesize the feedback by any of the following approaches. Please note that you are not required to implement any of the suggestions, though you should consider each. Remember once you administer a survey, you cannot amend it!

• Using written feedback and assessing each piece of feedback

• Thoroughly discussing each applicable item through one-on-one conversations

• Combined feedback via a focus group like setting where all three individuals meet in a physical or virtual setting to address each applicable item through discourse

4. Incorporate any changes including any the feedback given in your third deliverable in your online survey and update the skeleton accordingly. If any items receive an updated index, please record that in the ReIndex column.

5. Write a two to three paragraph synopsis describing those who assessed the instrument and summarize their contributions. Then provide your approach to accepting or declining their feedback, including those that may have conflicted.

6. Rename both documents by following the submission guidelines, save the first in xlsx and second in docx format, respectively, and submitting each to eCampus
   
   

All incremental deliverables can be found on the main Tasks page