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| Criterion |  UX Research Contextual Inquiry |  Knowledge Modeling Concept Mapping |  Operations Root Cause Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When work processes are known only from accounts and the real context stays hidden, Contextual Inquiry makes behavior at the workplace visible. Observation and follow-up questions together show how people actually work, get interrupted, and improvise. | Concept Mapping arranges terms and relationships in a network that makes subject-matter connections tangible. It fits when a topic needs to be understood structurally rather than linearly. | When a problem keeps recurring and the cause stays unclear, the method exposes the underlying mechanism. It separates symptom, guess, and robust explanation from one another. |
Complexitysame | Medium | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 1-3 Wochen | 1-2 h | 1-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 4-12 Beobachtungen | 1-8 | 3-8 |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Field Notes, Workflow Insights, Pain Points | Concept Map, Relationship Labels, Knowledge Gaps | Problem Statement, Cause Hypotheses, Confirmed Causes, Action Plan |
Tagsno overlap | UX researchObservationContext | KnowledgeConceptsMappingSensemaking | Root causeProblem solvingQualityIncident |
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