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Selected:Tree TestingARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs)Golden PathArchitecture Decision Record
| Criterion |  UX Research Tree Testing |  Architecture ARID (Active Reviews for Intermediate Designs) |  Engineering Golden Path |  Architecture Architecture Decision Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When a navigation exists but search paths still fail, tree testing checks findability without visual distraction. The method shows whether labels, levels, and paths really lead to the intended destination. | 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. | When teams need a reliable default path for frequent use, sprawl quickly emerges without any guiding logic. Golden Path bundles the preferred path so good practice becomes easy and deviation becomes deliberate. | An ADR permanently records an architecture decision with context, trade-offs, and consequence. It creates continuity for later changes because the decision path stays traceable. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Medium | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-2 Tage | 2–4 h review as a planning range; preparation and evaluation additional | 1-3 Tage Setup, laufend | 15-45 min |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | Designers, developers as users, and facilitation | 2-8 | 1-3 |
Formatdifferent | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Async |
Outputdifferent | Findability Metrics, Path Analysis, Revised IA | Prioritized development tasks, Jointly produced code or pseudocode, Observed difficulties and open design questions, Proposed design revisions | Golden Path Guide, Templates, Quality Checks | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale |
Tagsno overlap | Information architectureNavigationFindability | ArchitectureEngineeringFeedbackValidationTasks | EngineeringProductivityGovernance | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance |