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| Criterion |  UX Research Affinity Diagramming |  UX Research Customer Journey Mapping |  Systems Thinking Current Reality Tree |  Operations Causal Factor Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When research notes, feedback, or observations sit unconnected side by side, affinity diagramming sorts the raw material into solid themes. Many individual points turn into patterns that make decisions and opportunities clearer. | When a user journey falls apart across many touchpoints, customer journey mapping makes the experience visible as a coherent arc. Phases, emotions, and breaks become legible enough to prioritize critical moments deliberately. | A Current Reality Tree condenses many symptoms into a few causal chains. The method makes visible which core problems drive several negative effects at once. | For an event with a complicated course, the method breaks down the contributing factors along the timeline. It shows how conditions, decisions, and reactions together produce a course of events. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | High | High |
Timedifferent | 45–90 min | 2-4 h | 2-6 h | 2-6 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | 4-10 | 3-8 | 3-10 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Theme clusters, Insight statements, Opportunity areas | Journey Map, Pain-point List, Opportunity Backlog | Current Reality Tree, Core Problems, Intervention Ideas | Event Timeline, Causal Factor Chart, Cause List, Corrective Actions |
Tagsno overlap | SynthesisQualitativeRoot cause | JourneyServiceService design | Systems thinkingRoot causeConstraintsCausality | CausalityIncidentRoot causeTimeline |