Card sort studies help shape information architectures; tree-testing studies evaluate them.

Even though surveys may be faster and cheaper than other research methods, they are not suited to all research goals.

Open-ended questions result in deeper insights. Closed questions provide clarification and detail, but no unexpected insights.

Modern day UX research methods answer a wide range of questions. To help you know when to use which user research method, each of 20 methods is mapped across 3 dimensions and over time within a typical product-development process.

The Wizard of Oz is a type of user-research method that involves interaction with a mock interface controlled by a human. It is used to test costly concepts inexpensively and to narrow down the problem space.

Watching users' actual behavior helps us gain insights to improve the user experience.