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| Criterion |  Engineering Hypothesis-Driven Troubleshooting |  Engineering Fault Isolation |  Knowledge Modeling Concept Mapping |  Operations 5 Whys |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When systems fail unexpectedly, spontaneous attempts often produce more noise than insight. Hypothesis-driven Troubleshooting translates symptoms into testable assumptions and makes troubleshooting learnable. | In technical failures, the visible symptom often gets mixed up with the actual cause. Fault Isolation narrows the fault space and progressively reduces which part of the system is truly affected. | Concept Mapping arranges terms and relationships in a network that makes subject-matter connections tangible. It fits when a topic needs to be understood structurally rather than linearly. | For a single, hard-to-explain deviation, the method exposes the causal chain behind the visible symptom. It keeps the cause open until a controllable condition emerges instead of a mere description. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Medium | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 30-240 min | 30-180 min | 1-2 h | 15-30 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1-6 | 1-6 | 1-8 | 2-6 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Hypothesis Log, Test Plan, Evidence Notes, Diagnosis Summary | Fault Isolation Map, Test Log, Excluded Hypotheses, Narrowed Fault Area | Concept Map, Relationship Labels, Knowledge Gaps | Root cause notes, Countermeasures |
Tagsno overlap | TroubleshootingProblem solvingDiagnosis | TroubleshootingDiagnosisEngineering | KnowledgeConceptsMappingSensemaking | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving |