On the basis of their intention one would have expected about 45 of the studies identified by Lancaster et al in 2000/1 to have been followed by a bigger study whereas we only found 8. Target sample A set of elements larger than or different from the population sampled and to which the researcher would like to generalize study samples. In comparison the feasibility studies tended to focus on fewer methodological components within individual studies. Too often research papers only refer to one element of the pilot study, for example, to the 'pre-testing' or 'pilot testing' of a questionnaire (De Vaus, 1993). In some cases this will be the first phase of the substantive study and data from the pilot phase may contribute to the final analysis; this can be referred to as an internal pilot. We revisited these journals to see whether the subsequent recommendations have changed the practice … 2002, 288: 358-62.

By using this website, you agree to our In contrast, several of the feasibility studies did not admit such an intention.

Only 12 studies were interventional pilot/feasibility studies which included testing of some component of the research process.

You can also search for this author in 2008, Medical Research Council, [The pre-publication history for this paper can be accessed here:Health Services Research, ScHARR, University of Sheffield, Regent Court, Regent St Sheffield, S1 4DA, UKMubashir Arain, Michael J Campbell & Cindy L CooperDepartment of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Lancaster, LA1 4YF, UKYou can also search for this author in

Sometimes the task is too hard, and the researcher may get a floor effect, because none of the participants can score at all or can complete the task – all performances are low. For instance:standard deviation of the outcome measure, which is needed in some cases to estimate sample size,characteristics of the proposed outcome measure and in some cases feasibility studies might involve designing a suitable outcome measure,follow-up rates, response rates to questionnaires, adherence/compliance rates, ICCs in cluster trials, etc.Feasibility studies for randomised controlled trials may not themselves be randomised.
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Only 8 out of 90 pilot studies identified by the earlier review led to subsequent main studies. However since pilot studies tend to be small, the results should be interpreted with caution [Some authors suggest that analysis of pilot studies should mainly be descriptive,[The views of the journal editors, albeit from a small sample, were not particularly encouraging and reflected the experience of Lancaster et al [We may expect that trials will increasingly be used to evaluate 'complex interventions'[We conclude that pilot studies are still poorly reported, with inappropriate emphasis on hypothesis-testing. Search Don’t know how to login?

[Initially 77 papers were found in the target journals for 2007-8 but 23 were review papers or commentaries or indirectly referred to the word "pilot" or "feasibility" and were not actually pilot studies leaving a total of 54 papers.

[The (UKCRN) Portfolio Database was searched for the terms 'feasibility' or 'pilot' in the title or research summary.

For example, the 6 pilot studies reported the intention to evaluate a total of 17 methodological components whereas in the 5 feasibility studies a total of only 6 methodological components were specifically identified as being under investigation (Table Another reason for conducting a pilot study is to provide information to enable a sample size calculation in a subsequent main study. 10.1097/CCM.0b013e3181920e33.Thabane L, Ma J, Chu R, Cheng J, Ismaila A, Rios LP, Robson R, Thabane M, Goldsmith CH: A tutorial on pilot studies: The what, why and How.