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| Criterion |  UX Research Diary Study |  UX Research Contextual Inquiry |  Systems Thinking Soft Systems Methodology |  Decision Making Argument 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 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. | Soft Systems Methodology helps explore unclear or politically charged problems systematically. Instead of forcing a quick answer, the method builds a shared understanding of perspectives and room for action. | When statements, evidence, and counterarguments get mixed up, a debate quickly loses its structure. Argument Mapping breaks a thesis down into its reasoning and makes visible what it really rests on. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Medium | High | Medium |
Timedifferent | 1-4 Wochen | 1-3 Wochen | 0.5-3 Tage | 1-3 h |
Participantsdifferent | 5-20 | 4-12 Beobachtungen | 5-15 | 1-8 |
Formatdifferent | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Diary Entries, Longitudinal Patterns, Experience Timeline | Field Notes, Workflow Insights, Pain Points | Rich Picture, Root Definitions, Conceptual Models, Change Agenda | Argument Map, Evidence Gaps, Decision Rationale |
Tagsno overlap | UX researchTrackingBehavior | UX researchObservationContext | Soft systemsComplexitySensemakingSystems thinking | SensemakingDecisionRationale |