scope-calibration

name	scope-calibration
description	Strategy: Adjust research question scope — zoom in/out until the scope is appropriate
version	1.0.0
category	hypothesis-formation
type	strategy
campaign	research-question
tactics	["question-refinement-loop"]
sops	["scope-assessment","finer-criteria-check","success-criteria-definition"]
dependencies	{"tactics":["question-refinement-loop"]}

Scope Calibration

Adjust research question scope — when a question is too broad or too narrow, find the right granularity through systematic zoom in/out.

When to Use

• The initial RQ is too broad (cannot be answered within a reasonable time)
• The initial RQ is too narrow (the answer is trivial or lacks significance)
• A balance between ambition and feasibility is needed

Thinking Framework

Core logic: a good research question has "Goldilocks" characteristics — not too broad, not too narrow, just right.

Zoom In (when the question is too broad)

Add constraints to narrow the scope:

• Time constraint: "within the past 5 years..."
• Place constraint: "among Chinese universities..."
• Population constraint: "for beginners..."
• Method constraint: "using a transformer architecture..."
• Phenomenon constraint: "especially under scenario X..."

Zoom Out (when the question is too narrow)

Relax constraints to widen the scope:

• Raise the level of abstraction: from concrete instance to general principle
• Remove unnecessary qualifiers
• Extend the scope of applicability

Judgment Criteria

• Too broad: requires a book to answer / cannot be answered by a single experiment
• Appropriate: answerable by one paper / a clear study design can be specified
• Too narrow: answer is self-evident / lacks theoretical contribution

Budget Gate

Tier	Iteration rounds	Output
S	≥1 round of scope adjustment	Appropriately scoped RQ
M	≥2 rounds of scope adjustment + comparison	Before/after comparison + final RQ
L	≥3 rounds + multi-direction exploration	Multiple granularity versions + rationale for the optimal choice

Default Reference Flow

1. Run scope-assessment on the current RQ
2. Choose the zoom direction based on the verdict (too broad / too narrow)
3. Apply constraint adjustments
4. Re-assess scope
5. Iterate until "appropriate"
6. Confirm with the FINER check

context-checkpoint

After the strategy completes, context-checkpoint must be called, recording:

• The original RQ and its scope verdict