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| Criterion |  UX Research Card Sorting |  Architecture Architecture Decision Record |  Engineering Golden Path |
|---|---|---|---|
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. | 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. | When teams need a reliable default path for frequent use, sprawl quickly emerges without any guiding logic. Golden Path bundles the preferred path so good practice becomes easy and deviation becomes deliberate. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 20-45 min | 15-45 min | 1-3 Tage Setup, laufend |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | 1-3 | 2-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale | Golden Path Guide, Templates, Quality Checks |
Tagsno overlap | Information architectureNavigationStructure | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance | EngineeringProductivityGovernance |
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