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Criterion
Paper illustration of two people facing each other, speech bubbles and an open interview notebook.
UX Research
User Interviews
Affinity Diagramming
UX Research
Affinity Diagramming
Paper illustration for Trade-off Analysis.
Decision Making
Trade-off Analysis
Purposedifferent
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.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.With limited resources, quality, speed, cost, and risk almost always compete with each other. Trade-off Analysis makes these tensions explicit and prevents decisions from producing hidden side effects.
Complexitydifferent
LowLowMedium
Timedifferent
30–60 min per interview45–90 min45-120 min
Participantsdifferent
1 participant per interview3-102-8
Formatdifferent
Workshop + asyncWorkshopWorkshop + async
Outputdifferent
Interview Notes, Themes, Insight SummaryTheme clusters, Insight statements, Opportunity areasTrade-off Matrix, Criteria List, Decision Rationale, Accepted Downsides
Tagsno overlap
QualitativeResearchCustomerDiscovery
SynthesisQualitativeRoot cause
TradeoffsDecisionCriteriaOptions
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Paper illustration of a decision table with criteria rows, weighted ratings, and a narrowly leading alternative.
Decision Making
Decision Matrix
Paper illustration of an assumption matrix with prioritized test cards
Decision Making
Assumption Surfacing
Paper illustration for Constraint Analysis.
Decision Making
Constraint Analysis