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Criterion
Design sheets and interface cards connect to jointly written pseudocode with highlighted unresolved questions.
Architecture
ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs)
A 5 Whys working surface connects an observable problem with evidenced causes, marked uncertainty and concrete countermeasures with ownership.
Operations
5 Whys
Causal Loop Diagram workspace showing the question, observations, and next decision.
Systems Thinking
Causal Loop Diagram
Purposedifferent
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.For a single, hard-to-explain deviation, the method exposes the causal chain behind the visible symptom. It keeps the cause open until a controllable condition emerges instead of a mere description.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.
Complexitydifferent
MediumLowMedium
Timedifferent
2–4 h review as a planning range; preparation and evaluation additional15-30 min1-3 h
Participantsdifferent
Designers, developers as users, and facilitation2-62-8
Formatdifferent
Workshop + asyncWorkshopWorkshop
Outputdifferent
Prioritized development tasks, Jointly produced code or pseudocode, Observed difficulties and open design questions, Proposed design revisionsRoot cause notes, CountermeasuresCausal Loop Diagram, Feedback Notes, Leverage Points
Tagsno overlap
ArchitectureEngineeringFeedbackValidationTasks
Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving
FeedbackSystems thinkingCausalityDynamics
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Methods with strong topical overlap with the current selection, not yet in the comparison.

Paper illustration for Causal Factor Analysis.
Operations
Causal Factor Analysis
Paper illustration for Current Reality Tree
Systems Thinking
Current Reality Tree
Paper illustration for Root Cause Analysis.
Operations
Root Cause Analysis
Stock and Flow Diagram method illustration showing its working structure
Systems Thinking
Stock and Flow Diagram