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| Criterion |  Architecture ATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method) |  Systems Thinking CATWOE Analysis |  Systems Thinking Current Reality Tree |
|---|---|---|---|
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. | CATWOE structures a problem from six viewpoints and prevents too narrow a view of the situation. Different experiences of the system become comparably discussable this way. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | High | Medium | High |
Timedifferent | Several meetings plus preparation and analysis; total effort depends on scope | 45-90 min | 2-6 h |
Participantsdifferent | Evaluation team, architects, and relevant stakeholders | 3-8 | 3-8 |
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 | CATWOE Canvas, Root Definition, Stakeholder Perspectives, Constraints | Current Reality Tree, Core Problems, Intervention Ideas |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureQualityRiskTradeoffsStakeholders | Systems thinkingFramingStakeholders | Systems thinkingRoot causeConstraintsCausality |
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