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Criterion
Paper illustration for Contextual Inquiry.
UX Research
Contextual Inquiry
Paper fishbone diagram with a measurable effect at the head and six labeled cause branches.
Operations
Fishbone Diagram
Paper illustration of a Concept Map with concepts and labelled links
Knowledge Modeling
Concept Mapping
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.When a problem has several possible contributing factors, the method sorts causes by cause areas. It prevents an initial hunch from blocking the view of other plausible drivers.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.
Complexitydifferent
MediumLowMedium
Timedifferent
1-3 Wochen30-60 min1-2 h
Participantsdifferent
4-12 Beobachtungen2-81-8
Formatdifferent
Workshop + asyncWorkshopWorkshop + async
Outputdifferent
Field Notes, Workflow Insights, Pain PointsFishbone Diagram, Cause Categories, Investigation BacklogConcept Map, Relationship Labels, Knowledge Gaps
Tagsno overlap
UX researchObservationContext
Root causeQualityOperations
KnowledgeConceptsMappingSensemaking
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Methods with strong topical overlap with the current selection, not yet in the comparison.

Paper illustration for Failure Mode and Effects Analysis
Operations
Failure Mode and Effects Analysis
Paper illustration for 8D Problem Solving.
Operations
8D Problem Solving
Gemba Walk workspace showing the question, observations, and next decision.
Operations
Gemba Walk
Paper illustration for Kepner-Tregoe
Operations
Kepner-Tregoe