A narrowed search refers to a search that limits the target records in stages.

When a narrowed search is executed, lists are created with the ASSIGN LIST statement of the data manipulation SQL. The lists are used in information searches that specify conditions and limit the data items in stages until the appropriate number of data items is reached. These lists are intermediate-stage data sets that are temporarily saved with a name (list name) or data sets that are saved.

If a list is created for a certain condition, using that list can increase the processing speed. When several conditions are specified, a search that combines several lists can be executed.