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| Criterion |  UX Research Contextual Inquiry |  UX Research Tree Testing |  UX Research Diary Study |  UX Research Card Sorting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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 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. | When experiences build up over days or weeks and a single session cannot capture them, Diary Study records the course of everyday life. Recurring triggers, moods, and habits become visible this way, beyond the sharpness of memory. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Medium | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-3 Wochen | 1-2 Tage | 1-4 Wochen | 20-45 min |
Participantsdifferent | 4-12 Beobachtungen | Based on research question | 5-20 | Based on research question |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Async | Async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Field Notes, Workflow Insights, Pain Points | Findability Metrics, Path Analysis, Revised IA | Diary Entries, Longitudinal Patterns, Experience Timeline | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses |
Tagsno overlap | UX researchObservationContext | Information architectureNavigationFindability | UX researchTrackingBehavior | Information architectureNavigationStructure |