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| Criterion |  UX Research Card Sorting |  Agile ROAM Board |  Architecture ATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method) |  Facilitation Alignment Mapping |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | When work needs to move between different states or columns, it makes that movement and its handoffs legible. It sorts work by value, risk, and delivery ability. The result is captured as a ROAM Board and an Owner List. | 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. | When several people work toward one goal but hold different mental maps, Alignment Mapping makes the discrepancies visible. It arranges goals, assumptions, and priorities so shared direction becomes verifiable. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | High | Medium |
Timedifferent | 20-45 min | 20-40 min initial, dann laufend | Several meetings plus preparation and analysis; total effort depends on scope | 1-2 h |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | 3-15 | Evaluation team, architects, and relevant stakeholders | 4-12 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses | ROAM Board, Owner List | Prioritized quality scenarios in a utility tree, Architecture risks with reasoning and assumptions, Sensitivity and trade-off points, Findings report with open investigations | Alignment Map, Open Issues, Decision Questions |
Tagsno overlap | Information architectureNavigationStructure | RiskAgileTrackingAlignment | ArchitectureQualityRiskTradeoffsStakeholders | AlignmentStakeholdersStrategyFacilitation |