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| Criterion |  UX Research User Interviews |  Architecture C4 Model |  Product Discovery Dual-Track Agile |  Architecture arc42 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | The C4 Model makes a system legible across several resolution levels, from context down to code. It suits situations where different audiences need to understand the same architecture from different altitudes. | When uncertainty and delivery run in parallel, it separates learning work from implementation while keeping both connected. It prevents unvalidated ideas from falling directly into the delivery stream. | arc42 structures architecture knowledge so teams can document system, decisions, and risks consistently. The template builds a living understanding of the architecture instead of scattered notes. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 30–60 min per interview | 1-4 h | Laufend, Wochen bis Monate | 1-2 Tage |
Participantsdifferent | 1 participant per interview | 1-5 | 4-10 | 1-4 |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Interview Notes, Themes, Insight Summary | Context Diagram, Container Diagram, Component Diagram | Discovery Backlog, Delivery Backlog, Experiment-Ergebnisse, Validierte Stories | Architecture Document, Context View, Runtime View, Deployment View |
Tagsno overlap | QualitativeResearchCustomerDiscovery | ArchitectureCommunicationVisualization | AgileDiscoveryDelivery | ArchitectureDocumentationCommunication |