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Criterion
Empathy Mapping
UX Research
Empathy Mapping
Paper illustration of two people facing each other, speech bubbles and an open interview notebook.
UX Research
User Interviews
Paper illustration for Future Reality Tree.
Systems Thinking
Future Reality Tree
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.When teams derive needs only from assumptions and real motives are missing, user interviews give direct access to behavior and meaning. Conversations from the target group's everyday life make patterns, tensions, and open questions solidly visible.A Future Reality Tree shows how desired actions are meant to lead to a better system state. The method checks whether a path of change holds together logically before time flows into implementation.
Complexitydifferent
LowLowHigh
Timedifferent
30–60 min30–60 min per interview2-4 h
Participantsdifferent
4-81 participant per interview3-8
Formatdifferent
WorkshopWorkshop + asyncWorkshop
Outputdifferent
Empathy Map, Assumptions List, Research GapsInterview Notes, Themes, Insight SummaryFuture Reality Tree, Negative Branches, Assumption List, Improved Injections
Tagsno overlap
SynthesisQualitativeWorkshop
QualitativeResearchCustomerDiscovery
Theory of ConstraintsSystems thinkingChange
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Often compared together

Methods with strong topical overlap with the current selection, not yet in the comparison.

Affinity Diagramming
UX Research
Affinity Diagramming
Paper illustration for Evaporating Cloud.
Systems Thinking
Evaporating Cloud
EventStorming on a long working surface: colored event cards form a business flow, friction points are marked, and a boundary separates different areas of responsibility.
Domain Modeling
EventStorming