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| Criterion |  Facilitation Six Thinking Hats |  Systems Thinking Current Reality Tree |  Decision Making Decision Matrix |  Operations Causal Factor Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When a topic gets stuck too quickly in the same thinking mode, Six Thinking Hats deliberately separates the perspectives. This means facts, risks, creativity, and emotional signals get worked through one after another instead of mixed together. | 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 several options collide with several criteria, comparison quickly becomes subjective. A Decision Matrix makes the trade-off visible and brings weighting, criteria, and options into a shared logic. | For an event with a complicated course, the method breaks down the contributing factors along the timeline. It shows how conditions, decisions, and reactions together produce a course of events. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | High | Medium | High |
Timedifferent | 45-90 min | 2-6 h | 45-90 min | 2-6 h |
Participantsdifferent | 4-12 | 3-8 | 2-8 | 3-10 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Perspective Notes, Decision Inputs, Action Items | Current Reality Tree, Core Problems, Intervention Ideas | Decision Matrix, Scoring Rationale, Selected Option | Event Timeline, Causal Factor Chart, Cause List, Corrective Actions |
Tagsno overlap | FacilitationOptionsDecision | Systems thinkingRoot causeConstraintsCausality | DecisionCriteriaScoringTradeoffs | CausalityIncidentRoot causeTimeline |