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| Criterion |  UX Research Diary Study |  UX Research Affinity Diagramming |  Systems Thinking Current Reality Tree |  UX Research Empathy Mapping |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | 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 research notes, feedback, or observations sit unconnected side by side, affinity diagramming sorts the raw material into solid themes. Many individual points turn into patterns that make decisions and opportunities clearer. | A Current Reality Tree condenses many symptoms into a few causal chains. The method makes visible which core problems drive several negative effects at once. | When a lot is assumed about a target group but little is seen jointly, empathy mapping makes knowledge and gaps directly comparable. The picture also shows which assumptions hold up and where evidence is missing. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | High | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-4 Wochen | 45–90 min | 2-6 h | 30–60 min |
Participantsdifferent | 5-20 | 3-10 | 3-8 | 4-8 |
Formatdifferent | Async | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Diary Entries, Longitudinal Patterns, Experience Timeline | Theme clusters, Insight statements, Opportunity areas | Current Reality Tree, Core Problems, Intervention Ideas | Empathy Map, Assumptions List, Research Gaps |
Tagsno overlap | UX researchTrackingBehavior | SynthesisQualitativeRoot cause | Systems thinkingRoot causeConstraintsCausality | SynthesisQualitativeWorkshop |