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| Criterion |  Decision Making Argument Mapping |  UX Research Affinity Diagramming |  Decision Making Decision Rights Mapping |  Architecture Architecture Decision Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When statements, evidence, and counterarguments get mixed up, a debate quickly loses its structure. Argument Mapping breaks a thesis down into its reasoning and makes visible what it really rests on. | 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. | In organizations with many stakeholders, it often blurs who actually decides and who is merely consulted. It separates options, evaluation criteria, and open risks. The result is captured as a Decision Rights matrix and an agreement. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-3 h | 45–90 min | 90-180 min | 15-45 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1-8 | 3-10 | 4-12 | 1-3 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop | Async |
Outputdifferent | Argument Map, Evidence Gaps, Decision Rationale | Theme clusters, Insight statements, Opportunity areas | Decision Rights Matrix, Agreement | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale |
Tagsno overlap | SensemakingDecisionRationale | SynthesisQualitativeRoot cause | DecisionGovernanceAlignmentResponsibility | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance |