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| Criterion |  Innovation Design Thinking |  UX Research Tree Testing |  UX Research Surveys |  UX Research Card Sorting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | For complex user problems with an uncertain cause, the method connects observation, interpretation, and experiment into a learning cycle. It keeps the focus on real needs and avoids premature solution language. This produces robust decisions for product and service. | 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 a topic needs to be validated broadly and many people can answer the same question, surveys gather structured feedback in a scalable form. Answers become comparable and segmentable instead of remaining merely anecdotal. | 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 | High | Medium | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 1 Tag bis mehrere Wochen | 1-2 Tage | 3-14 Tage | 20-45 min |
Participantsdifferent | 4-10 | Based on research question | 50+ | Based on research question |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Async | Async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Problem Statement, Prototype, Test Learnings | Findability Metrics, Path Analysis, Revised IA | Survey Results, Charts, Segment Insights | Content groups, Label set, IA hypotheses |
Tagsno overlap | InnovationPrototypeResearch | Information architectureNavigationFindability | QuantitativeResearchValidation | Information architectureNavigationStructure |