{
  "schema": "vedokrok.public-item.v1",
  "release_id": "MHC-RPUB-20260920-75ad787a",
  "url": "/knowledge/stop-the-search-when-the-next-evidence-is-unlikely-to-change-the-decision",
  "id": "MHC-D-RESEARCH-0518",
  "version": "0.1.0",
  "title": "Stop the search when the next evidence is unlikely to change the decision",
  "summary": "A search can be methodical without being infinite.",
  "kind": "principle",
  "body": "Use a stopping rule matched to the job. For formal reviews, follow the required completeness-oriented protocol. For bounded decision research, stop when additional searches mostly yield duplicates and the remaining uncertainty is unlikely to change the action, confidence boundary or safety decision. Record what remains unknown.",
  "limits": [
    "Do not use a practical stopping rule for tasks that explicitly require exhaustive systematic retrieval."
  ],
  "topics": [
    "union-research-search-strategy"
  ],
  "intents": [],
  "source_ids": [
    "RS-1356932559D1592D"
  ],
  "evidence": [
    {
      "claim": "Cochrane explicitly discusses when to stop searching and treats search as an iterative process whose stopping point should be justified.",
      "source_id": "RS-1356932559D1592D",
      "role": "supports",
      "note": "Stopping rules differ between formal completeness-oriented reviews and practical decision research.",
      "locator": "When to stop searching"
    }
  ],
  "use_when": [
    "Research continues because another paper can always be found."
  ],
  "avoid_when": [
    "Do not use a practical stopping rule for tasks that explicitly require exhaustive systematic retrieval."
  ],
  "example": "Stop a tool-buying evidence review once new sources repeat the same compatibility limits and no unresolved issue could change the purchase decision.",
  "check": "The stopping decision can be explained by diminishing evidence value rather than fatigue or confirmation of a preferred answer.",
  "sources": [
    {
      "id": "RS-1356932559D1592D",
      "title": "Chapter 4: Searching for and selecting studies",
      "url": "https://www.cochrane.org/authors/handbooks-and-manuals/handbook/current/chapter-04"
    }
  ],
  "relations": [],
  "collections": [
    {
      "id": "RC-F645BF33EA699D13",
      "title": "Search for evidence as a reproducible process, not a lucky query",
      "url": "/collections/search-for-evidence-as-a-reproducible-process-not-a-lucky-query"
    }
  ]
}