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| Criterion |  UX Research User Interviews |  Architecture Risk Storming |  Architecture ATAM (Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method) |  Product Discovery Assumption Mapping |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | Helps clarify architecture context, options, and consequences in concrete terms. It organizes technical context, alternatives, and consequences. The result is captured as an Annotated Diagram, a Prioritized Risk List, and an Action Backlog. | ATAM helps teams weigh architecture decisions when quality goals compete. The team considers business goals, stakeholder expectations, and technical decisions together. The evaluation shows which risks need further investigation. | When assumptions still sit unordered in the room, it weighs uncertainty against leverage. It makes visible which hypotheses should be checked first. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | High | Medium |
Timedifferent | 30–60 min per interview | 60-90 min | Several meetings plus preparation and analysis; total effort depends on scope | 45-60 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1 participant per interview | 4-12 | Evaluation team, architects, and relevant stakeholders | 2-8 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Interview Notes, Themes, Insight Summary | Annotated Diagram, Prioritized Risk List, Action Backlog | Prioritized quality scenarios in a utility tree, Architecture risks with reasoning and assumptions, Sensitivity and trade-off points, Findings report with open investigations | Assumption map, Test backlog, Risk ranking |
Tagsno overlap | QualitativeResearchCustomerDiscovery | RiskArchitectureWorkshopValidation | ArchitectureQualityRiskTradeoffsStakeholders | AssumptionsRiskExperimentsValidation |