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| Criterion |  Architecture Architecture Decision Record |  UX Research User Interviews |  Architecture ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs) |
|---|---|---|---|
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. | When teams derive needs only from assumptions and real motives are missing, user interviews give direct access to behavior and meaning. Conversations from the target group's everyday life make patterns, tensions, and open questions solidly visible. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 15-45 min | 30–60 min per interview | 2–4 h review as a planning range; preparation and evaluation additional |
Participantsdifferent | 1-3 | 1 participant per interview | Designers, developers as users, and facilitation |
Formatdifferent | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale | Interview Notes, Themes, Insight Summary | Prioritized development tasks, Jointly produced code or pseudocode, Observed difficulties and open design questions, Proposed design revisions |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance | QualitativeResearchCustomerDiscovery | ArchitectureEngineeringFeedbackValidationTasks |
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