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Selected:User InterviewsSAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method)Assumption SurfacingChange Analysis
| Criterion |  UX Research User Interviews |  Architecture SAAM (Software Architecture Analysis Method) |  Decision Making Assumption Surfacing |  Operations Change 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. | SAAM helps teams judge an architecture’s suitability for selected tasks and changes. It is particularly useful for examining modifiability and comparing architecture alternatives with clear reasoning. | Plans often contain assumptions that were never openly stated and remain dangerous precisely because of that. Assumption Surfacing makes these silent premises visible and prioritizes which of them carry the initiative or could sink it. | For a deviation after a change, the method isolates the influence of the altered condition. It narrows down which differences are relevant and which are just accompanying noise. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | High | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 30–60 min per interview | Preparation, scenario analysis, and findings review; effort depends on scope | 45-90 min | 45-120 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1 participant per interview | Architecture experts and stakeholders for scenarios and weighting | 2-8 | 2-6 |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Interview Notes, Themes, Insight Summary | Domain functions mapped to components and connections, Quality attributes and evaluation criteria, Typical tasks and their effects on the architecture, Reasoned evaluation or comparison of alternatives | Assumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning Plan | Change Matrix, Cause Hypotheses, Validation Questions, Action List |
Tagsno overlap | QualitativeResearchCustomerDiscovery | ArchitectureChangeAnalysisComparisonQuality | AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery | ChangeRoot causeTroubleshootingComparison |