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| Criterion |  UX Research Usability Testing |  Product Discovery Outcome-Driven Innovation |  UX Research Affinity Diagramming |  UX Research Empathy Mapping |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When a product is built but people get stuck on tasks, usability testing shows the friction at concrete points. Observed use instead of self-report makes visible where orientation, understanding, or interaction breaks down. | Outcome-Driven Innovation clarifies customer problems, solution opportunities, and evidence. It separates jobs, desired outcomes, importance, satisfaction, and opportunity, and captures results as desired outcome statements, an opportunity landscape, and segments by underserved needs. | 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. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | High | Low | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-2 h je Session | Mehrere Wochen | 45–90 min | 30–60 min |
Participantsdifferent | Based on research question | 2-6 researchers plus sample | 3-10 | 4-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | Usability Issues, Severity List, Recommendations | Desired outcome statements, Opportunity landscape, Segmentation by underserved needs, Innovation hypotheses | Theme clusters, Insight statements, Opportunity areas | Empathy Map, Assumptions List, Research Gaps |
Tagsno overlap | ValidationUXPrototype | OutcomesInnovationResearchQuantitative | SynthesisQualitativeRoot cause | SynthesisQualitativeWorkshop |