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| Criterion |  UX Research Card Sorting |  Decision Making Assumption Surfacing |  Decision Making Decision Matrix |
|---|---|---|---|
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. | Plans often contain assumptions that were never openly stated and remain dangerous precisely because of that. Assumption Surfacing makes these silent premises visible and prioritizes which of them carry the initiative or could sink it. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 20-45 min | 45-90 min | 45-90 min |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | 2-8 | 2-8 |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses | Assumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning Plan | Decision Matrix, Scoring Rationale, Selected Option |
Tagsno overlap | Information architectureNavigationStructure | AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery | DecisionCriteriaScoringTradeoffs |
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