Research Methodology

Plans, Steps, and Sources

Trovella organizes research into three levels:

• Plans represent a complete research question
• Steps are individual investigation tasks within a plan
• Sources are the references found and cited during each step

How Steps Are Designed

The AI analyzes your research question and identifies the key aspects that need investigation. Each becomes a step with a clear objective, search strategy, and success criteria.

Source Discovery

Trovella uses hybrid search (keyword + semantic) to find relevant sources. Sources are ranked by relevance and evaluated for credibility before being included in findings.

Confidence Scoring

Findings are scored based on source diversity, agreement between sources, and the quality of evidence. Higher confidence means more sources agree on the finding.

Quick Scan vs Deep Dive

• Quick Scan (2-4 steps): Fast turnaround, surface-level findings. Best for simple questions or time-sensitive needs.
• Deep Dive (5-8+ steps): Thorough investigation with multiple checkpoints. Best for complex questions that need comprehensive coverage.