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Criterion
Paper illustration for Contextual Inquiry.
UX Research
Contextual Inquiry
Paper illustration of an IBIS map with issues, positions and arguments
Knowledge Modeling
IBIS
Paper illustration for Constraint Analysis.
Decision Making
Constraint 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.IBIS structures thinking about complex questions as a sequence of issues, ideas, and arguments. The method keeps discussions open without forcing them into premature consensus.When an initiative stalls, the limit often lies not in the idea but in hard or soft boundary conditions. Constraint Analysis separates these limits and shows which of them can actually be shaped.
Complexitydifferent
MediumMediumLow
Timedifferent
1-3 Wochen1-3 h30-90 min
Participantsdifferent
4-12 Beobachtungen2-82-8
Formatsame
Workshop + asyncWorkshop + asyncWorkshop + async
Outputdifferent
Field Notes, Workflow Insights, Pain PointsIssue Map, Positions, Argument NotesConstraint List, Hard/Soft Classification, Option Impact Notes, Decision Boundaries
Tagsno overlap
UX researchObservationContext
RationaleKnowledgeDecision
ConstraintsDecisionPlanningOptions
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Methods with strong topical overlap with the current selection, not yet in the comparison.

Paper illustration for Argument Mapping
Decision Making
Argument Mapping
Decision Tree method illustration showing its working structure
Decision Making
Decision Tree
A hypothetical failure makes concrete risks, signals, and fitting mitigations visible.
Decision Making
Pre-Mortem
Paper matrix with six colored hat cards for information, feeling, value, caution, ideas and process control.
Facilitation
Six Thinking Hats