9.5 The source log

A source log supports both research quality and reproducibility.

Field	Example
Information need	Population projection by age and service area
Source organization	Statistical agency
Dataset or publication	Population projections table
URL or identifier	Stable table or catalogue link
Access date	Date retrieved
Reference period	Historical base and projection years
Population and geography	Residents by specified service area
Variables and units	Persons, age group, projection scenario
Limitations	Boundary and scenario assumptions
Transformations	Age regrouping and geographic aggregation
Citation and licence	Required attribution and reuse conditions
Decision	Accepted, rejected, or used with qualification

Rejected sources should remain in the log with a reason. This prevents the team from repeating the same search and demonstrates that source selection was deliberate.