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| Criterion |  UX Research Card Sorting |  UX Research Tree Testing |  UX Research HEART Framework |  Engineering Goal Question Metric |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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 a navigation exists but search paths still fail, tree testing checks findability without visual distraction. The method shows whether labels, levels, and paths really lead to the intended destination. | Helps clarify observations, needs, and patterns in concrete terms. It groups observations into patterns, questions, and decisions. The result is captured as a HEART-GSM table and dashboard. | Helps clarify technical problems, hypotheses, and next steps in concrete terms. It breaks a technical problem into testable parts. The result is captured as a GQM table and metric briefs. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 20-45 min | 1-2 Tage | 120 min initial, dann laufend | 90-180 min |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | Based on research question | 3-6 | 3-6 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses | Findability Metrics, Path Analysis, Revised IA | HEART-GSM Table, Dashboard | GQM Table, Metric Profiles |
Tagsno overlap | Information architectureNavigationStructure | Information architectureNavigationFindability | MetricsUX researchMeasurementSatisfaction | MetricsMeasurementEngineeringAlignment |