Pilot studies (PS) are ubiquitous in HCI research. CHI papers routinely reference 'pilot studies', 'pilot tests', or 'preliminary studies' to justify design decisions, verify procedures, or motivate methodological choices. Yet despite their frequency, the role of pilot studies in HCI remains conceptually vague and empirically underexamined. Unlike fields such as medicine, nursing, and education, where pilot and feasibility studies have well-established definitions, guidelines, reporting standards and even a dedicated research journal, the CHI community lacks a shared understanding of what constitutes a pilot study, why they are conducted, and how they should be reported. Many papers reference pilots 'in passing', without details about design, outcomes, or how the pilot informed the main study. This variability suggests a methodological blind spot in our community.

翻译：预实验在人机交互研究中无处不在。CHI论文常引用“预实验”“预测试”或“初步研究”来论证设计决策、验证流程或解释方法选择。然而，尽管预实验频繁出现，其在人机交互领域中的角色在概念上仍模糊不清，且缺乏实证检验。与医学、护理学和教育学等领域不同——这些领域已建立完善的预实验与可行性研究定义、指南、报告标准甚至专业期刊——CHI学界对预实验的构成要素、实施目的及报告规范缺乏共识。许多论文仅“顺带提及”预实验，未详述其设计、结果或对主研究的启示。这种差异性揭示了本领域存在方法论盲区。