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Selected:Architecture Decision Record Causal Loop Diagram ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs)Behavior Over Time Graph

Criterion	Architecture Architecture Decision Record	Systems Thinking Causal Loop Diagram	Architecture ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs)	Systems Thinking Behavior Over Time Graph
Purposedifferent	An ADR permanently records an architecture decision with context, trade-offs, and consequence. It creates continuity for later changes because the decision path stays traceable.	A Causal Loop Diagram makes feedback, reinforcement, and balance in a system legible. It uncovers side effects and self-reinforcement that stay hidden in linear explanations.	ARID examines how well developers can work with a technical design. It focuses on a part of the system that can still be revised, between the architecture overview and the detailed specification.	A Behavior Over Time Graph shows how a metric or observation develops over time. The method makes trends, breaks, and recurring patterns visible that get lost in snapshots.
Complexitydifferent	Low	Medium	Medium	Low
Timedifferent	15-45 min	1-3 h	2–4 h review as a planning range; preparation and evaluation additional	20-45 min
Participantsdifferent	1-3	2-8	Designers, developers as users, and facilitation	1-10
Formatdifferent	Async	Workshop	Workshop + async	Workshop + async
Outputdifferent	ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale	Causal Loop Diagram, Feedback Notes, Leverage Points	Prioritized development tasks, Jointly produced code or pseudocode, Observed difficulties and open design questions, Proposed design revisions	Behavior Over Time Graph, Trend Hypotheses, Key Events
Tagsno overlap	ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance	FeedbackSystems thinkingCausalityDynamics	ArchitectureEngineeringFeedbackValidationTasks	Systems thinkingPatternsDynamics

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