Agree on the question
The brief states what you need to establish and who will use the result. It identifies the material already available and sets a stopping point for the research.
Research standards
How we check the research
You should be able to find the source behind a finding and see where the evidence runs out. These are the controls Atlas uses to keep that record, from the first search to delivery.
Scope · Search · Selection · Provenance · Analysis · VerificationThe operating principle
Keep the working record
The final document is supported by working records appropriate to the project. A literature map may need search and screening notes. A chronology needs document references for its entries. The proposal specifies what will be kept and what you will receive.
Working method
From scope to delivery
The depth of documentation depends on the work and its consequences. It is agreed before research begins.
Set a source hierarchy
We identify which sources carry authority for the question. Primary and official records receive priority where appropriate. For a secondary account, we examine the author’s expertise and method, how close it is to the events, whether it is current and whether it is independent.
Record the search path
The record shows where we searched and when. Search terms and language limits are retained at the level agreed in the scope, along with citation trails that led to further material.
Explain selection
A source must address the question and meet the agreed standard. Where the scope requires it, the record also explains why apparently relevant material was excluded.
Preserve provenance
The source entry identifies the document and version used. It includes the date and retrieval location, with context needed to assess the passage being cited.
Compare like with like
Two sources may use the same term differently or describe different periods. Studies may examine different populations and outcomes. Those differences are recorded before findings are combined.
State support and uncertainty
A reported claim is distinguished from a finding supported directly by the source. Inferences are labelled. Disputed or missing evidence is recorded, and questions needing specialist review are identified.
Verify the delivered work
We check material statements against their sources and verify quotations and citations. Dates and calculations are checked, as are the labels on tables and figures. The delivery is then compared with the agreed scope.
Method references
Method references
These public references inform how Atlas frames questions and records sources, and how the work is reported and checked. Citing them does not imply certification or institutional endorsement.
Representation of method
A focused search is described as a focused search
An evidence map is not automatically a systematic review. Atlas does not use a specialist label unless the method and qualified review support it and the governing requirements are met. Atlas does not provide legal opinions or medical advice.
Language scope
Confirm the language you need
The website has three language editions: English, German and French. We confirm the service language for each project, including any need for a native reviewer or certified translation. The website editions are not certified translations.
Technology and AI
AI output is not a source
AI and other software may assist research and document production. Material claims are checked against the cited sources, regardless of which tool helped produce the draft. Any required specialist review is identified in the project scope.
Client material
Agree on handling before sending files
We agree who may access sensitive material and how it will be transferred and retained before substantive work begins. Do not attach it to an ordinary email while those arrangements are pending.
Professional boundaries
The decisions remain yours
Research support does not replace licensed legal or clinical judgment. Students and writers retain authorship. The scope must respect the responsibilities and disclosure duties of anyone submitting or publishing the work.
Before delivery
Check the document as well as the findings
A correct figure under the wrong label is still an error. The final review checks units and definitions, the references printed beside findings and whether tables convey what the text says they convey. We also check that the agreed components are present.
Discuss a project
Tell us how the work will be reviewed
An internal reading note and a document intended for publication need different levels of checking. Explain the intended use when you inquire so we can account for it in the scope.
Discuss a project