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Selected:Empathy MappingARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs)LASR (Lightweight Approach for Software Reviews)Affinity Diagramming
| Criterion | ![]() UX Research Empathy Mapping | ![]() Architecture ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs) | ![]() Architecture LASR (Lightweight Approach for Software Reviews) | ![]() UX Research Affinity Diagramming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | 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. | ARID examines how well developers can work with a technical design. It focuses on a part of the system that can still be revised, between the architecture overview and the detailed specification. | LASR helps development teams identify where their software falls short of important quality goals and which improvements to consider. A small group with existing system knowledge can make an initial assessment and investigate open questions in more detail. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 30–60 min | 2–4 h review as a planning range; preparation and evaluation additional | 3–4 h for initial assessment; preparation and deeper analysis additional | 45–90 min |
Participantsdifferent | 4-8 | Designers, developers as users, and facilitation | 1 or a small team; particularly suitable for 3–4 people | 3-10 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Empathy Map, Assumptions List, Research Gaps | Prioritized development tasks, Jointly produced code or pseudocode, Observed difficulties and open design questions, Proposed design revisions | Lean Mission Statement describing the software’s purpose, Prioritized quality goals and evaluation criteria, Risks and estimated gaps against quality goals, More closely examined findings and open checks | Theme clusters, Insight statements, Opportunity areas |
Tagsno overlap | SynthesisQualitativeWorkshop | ArchitectureEngineeringFeedbackValidationTasks | ArchitectureQualityRiskAssessmentLean | SynthesisQualitativeRoot cause |



