research-methodology

name	research-methodology
description	Professional research methodology — journalistic investigation, industry analysis, technical verification, and academic-style systematic research. References codify source evaluation, ACH, synthesis, interview handling, signal detection, and reproduction standards.
version	1.1.0
author	Hermes Agent community
license	MIT
metadata	{"hermes":{"tags":["research","journalism","industry-analysis","source-evaluation","verification"]}}

Research Methodology

Professional research process for a subagent. Three tracks based on the type of research:

• Journalistic — investigative pieces, primary source research, source-heavy narrative work
• Industry analysis — market research and strategy, signal detection
• Academic/Comprehensive — deep systematic research when depth matters most

All three share the same lifecycle (Scope → Gather → Evaluate → Analyze → Synthesize → Report) but differ in evidence standards, speed, and output format.

The Research Lifecycle

SCOPE → GATHER → EVALUATE → ANALYZE → SYNTHESIZE → REPORT

Reference Files

Tracks

Track	Reference	When to load
Journalistic	references/journalistic-research.md	You're researching an investigative piece — primary sources, interviews, documents, series management, pre-publication verification
Industry analysis	references/industry-analysis.md	You're researching an industry analysis piece — signal detection, corporate evidence, competitive intelligence, case study standards
Academic / Comprehensive	references/research-lifecycle.md	You're doing deep systematic research — question scoping, search strategy, inclusion/exclusion criteria

Shared Methodology

Reference	When to load
references/source-evaluation.md	You need to judge whether a source is credible — CRAAP test, triangulation, reliability tiers
references/structured-analytic-techniques.md	You need to evaluate competing explanations — ACH, driving forces, pre-mortem, indicators
references/synthesis-patterns.md	You need to combine findings from multiple sources into synthesized conclusions
references/technical-verification.md	You need to test a technical claim by reproducing it — benchmarks, API behavior, configuration

Assets

Asset	What it produces
assets/research-brief.md	Structured brief with findings, confidence assessment, evidence table, open questions
assets/research-log.md	Traceable record of searches, sources, and decisions

Pre-Publication Gateway

For any piece that makes factual claims, load the relevant track's verification protocol before reporting back:

• Journalistic: 7-step pre-publication protocol from references/journalistic-research.md
• Industry: 7-step research protocol from references/industry-analysis.md
• Technical: 5-step reproduction protocol from references/technical-verification.md