Mission & standards

Search Institute investigates how search and AI systems select, rank, retrieve, cite, and recommend information. Its purpose is to make those mechanisms more observable through careful, source-traceable research.

• Primary evidence first: experiments, papers, datasets, system documentation, and direct records take precedence over summaries.
• Claims stay inside the evidence: association is not presented as causation, and unresolved confounds remain visible.
• Methods travel with findings: samples, model versions, dates, operational definitions, exclusions, and limitations are disclosed when available.
• Sources are inspectable: consequential factual claims link to evidence a reader can check.
• Institutional and individual authorship stay distinct: named writers receive named bylines; collective work uses the Search Institute Team.
• Corrections are part of publication: material changes are dated and the reason for the change is stated.