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| Criterion |  UX Research Card Sorting |  Architecture Risk Storming |  UX Research First-click Testing |  Architecture ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | Helps clarify architecture context, options, and consequences in concrete terms. It organizes technical context, alternatives, and consequences. The result is captured as an Annotated Diagram, a Prioritized Risk List, and an Action Backlog. | When users immediately turn the wrong way on a screen or wireframe, first click testing checks initial orientation at high speed. The first click shows early whether expectation, labeling, and wayfinding fit together. | ARID examines how well developers can work with a technical design. It focuses on a part of the system that can still be revised, between the architecture overview and the detailed specification. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 20-45 min | 60-90 min | 1-2 Tage | 2–4 h review as a planning range; preparation and evaluation additional |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | 4-12 | 10-30 | Designers, developers as users, and facilitation |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses | Annotated Diagram, Prioritized Risk List, Action Backlog | Click Heatmap, Success Rate, Design Recommendations | Prioritized development tasks, Jointly produced code or pseudocode, Observed difficulties and open design questions, Proposed design revisions |
Tagsno overlap | Information architectureNavigationStructure | RiskArchitectureWorkshopValidation | UXNavigationFindabilityValidation | ArchitectureEngineeringFeedbackValidationTasks |