# Constraint Elicitation

> Structured questioning SOP to identify practical constraints that shape the research spec. Used during spec generation.

- Skill: `yogsoth-ai/constraint-elicitation` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add yogsoth-ai/constraint-elicitation`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/yogsoth-ai/constraint-elicitation/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Research & Search
- Author: yogsoth-ai (https://skillmd.com/u/yogsoth-ai)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/yogsoth-ai/constraint-elicitation

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# Constraint Elicitation

Ask the user 2-3 questions about practical constraints.

## Questions (select 2-3 most relevant)

1. **Time Budget**
   - "Roughly how many sessions do you want to spend on this research?"
   - Options: (A) Quick — 3-4 sessions (B) Standard — 5-7 sessions (C) Deep — 8-10 sessions (D) No limit, go as deep as needed

2. **Existing Knowledge**
   - "Do you already have papers, notes, or prior research on this topic?"
   - Options: (A) Starting from scratch (B) I have some papers/notes I can share (C) I have significant prior work — skip basics

3. **Tool Preferences**
   - "Any preferences for research tools?"
   - Options: (A) Use everything available (B) Prioritize academic papers (Semantic Scholar) (C) Prioritize web sources (D) I'll provide specific sources

4. **Hard Constraints**
   - "Any hard constraints I should know about?"
   - Open-ended — deadlines, specific exclusions, required methodologies

## Rules

- Ask ONE question at a time
- Skip questions whose answers are obvious from context
- Time budget directly affects spec granularity (fewer sessions = fewer strategies per stage)

