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| Criterion |  UX Research Card Sorting |  Operations ABC Analysis |  Decision Making Decision Matrix |  Decision Making Trade-off Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | 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. | With many similar objects of differing economic significance, the method prioritizes effort by effect. It separates what needs regular steering from what rarely needs attention. | When several options collide with several criteria, comparison quickly becomes subjective. A Decision Matrix makes the trade-off visible and brings weighting, criteria, and options into a shared logic. | With limited resources, quality, speed, cost, and risk almost always compete with each other. Trade-off Analysis makes these tensions explicit and prevents decisions from producing hidden side effects. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 20-45 min | 30-60 min | 45-90 min | 45-120 min |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | 1-5 | 2-8 | 2-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses | ABC Classification, Focus Rules, Control List | Decision Matrix, Scoring Rationale, Selected Option | Trade-off Matrix, Criteria List, Decision Rationale, Accepted Downsides |
Tagsno overlap | Information architectureNavigationStructure | PrioritizationOperationsPortfolio | DecisionCriteriaScoringTradeoffs | TradeoffsDecisionCriteriaOptions |