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| Criterion |  Architecture ATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method) |  UX Research Card Sorting |  Operations 5 Whys |
|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | ATAM helps teams weigh architecture decisions when quality goals compete. The team considers business goals, stakeholder expectations, and technical decisions together. The evaluation shows which risks need further investigation. | When content only makes sense internally and users can't find the structure again, card sorting exposes their mental order. Terms, groups, and naming are then aligned with the target group's expectations. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | High | Low | Low |
Timedifferent | Several meetings plus preparation and analysis; total effort depends on scope | 20-45 min | 15-30 min |
Participantsdifferent | Evaluation team, architects, and relevant stakeholders | Based on research question | 2-6 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Prioritized quality scenarios in a utility tree, Architecture risks with reasoning and assumptions, Sensitivity and trade-off points, Findings report with open investigations | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses | Root cause notes, Countermeasures |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureQualityRiskTradeoffsStakeholders | Information architectureNavigationStructure | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving |
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