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| Criterion |  Architecture Architecture Decision Record |  UX Research User Interviews |  Operations Root Cause Analysis |  Operations Root Cause Tree Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | When a problem keeps recurring and the cause stays unclear, the method exposes the underlying mechanism. It separates symptom, guess, and robust explanation from one another. | For a problem with several suspected causes, the method builds a causal structure instead of a mere list. It makes visible how causes connect and where the strongest points of leverage lie. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 15-45 min | 30–60 min per interview | 1-4 h | 1-3 h |
Participantsdifferent | 1-3 | 1 participant per interview | 3-8 | 2-8 |
Formatdifferent | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale | Interview Notes, Themes, Insight Summary | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan | Cause Tree, Evidence Notes, Countermeasures |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance | QualitativeResearchCustomerDiscovery | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident | Root causeTreeIncidentQuality |