Q 415. Explain Card Sorting and use examples to show how it is different from an Affinity Diagram.

 

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Card Sorting is method / Approach to evaluate different information for any given design projects. Generally, in Card Sorting, participants organize all related topics in different categories & make bucket accordingly. It can be done by using Actual card, Paper or online software available. Some of the Card Sorting methods are Open, Closed, Remote & Face to Face.

 

Benefits of Card Sorting Method:

• It provides good insights of all possible info for evaluation.
• This is easy & simple to understand & execute among the team.
• It ensures all users participations.
• It is cost effective & not much cost is involved.

 

Limitation of Card Sorting:

• There may be lack of consensus while categorizing.
• This may not reach to root cause of the issue.
• Based on this, data analysis is not easy to perform.
• It may give different result at different time.

Card Sort Vs Affinity Diagram

Card sorting finds common patterns in the way different people or group information, while affinity diagramming obtains a consensus result.

There are two types of card sort exercises which are explained below:

Open Card Sort

In this exercise, participants are always given a stack of cards and they are asked to group the cards together as it makes sense to them, there is nothing like correct answer or incorrect answer. After grouping the cards, they name each group.

Closed Card Sort

In this type exercise, all the participants are grouped and named & they are asked to place each of the cards in one of the per-established groups. The variation of the closed card sort is a partial-open/closed card sort exercise. In a partial-open/closed card sort, the participants start with a closed one, with the exception that they can make changes to the group names, and may add, rename and remove the groups.

Affinity Diagram:

Affinity diagram follows a process where it is performed by a team or group. This method always taps creativity of the teams. This is appreciable where knowledgeable people participate to include their opinions and insights regarding the issues through brain storming. To get the effective result, the participants number should not more.

When Affinity Diagram should be used.

1.      When you start a new product, needs as many as good ideas

2.      When the issues seem large and complex that cannot be resolved easily

3.      When group discretion is very much needed to explore the user-friendly features for any product.

Steps to be followed to draw an effective Affinity diagram:

1.      Note down all the ideas and collate them so that all the ideas would be visible for all the participants

2.      Always try to gather more ideas and explore which seem to be useful for the product.

3.      Every idea/note should have the time line to be placed

4.      Brainstorm with the team and shortlist the notes & group all the ideas mentioned on the notes based on the relation between them

5.      Remove other notes which are repeated

6.      Present your analysis to others stake holders in the company in an easy-to-understand manner

 

Thank You!

Card Sorting is a technique used to capture the User's thoughts on what all topics/features they would like to see in the product and how they would like to group them. This is usually done for creating website, where the users are asked what all topics need to be included in the website and how they would like to group them so that the development team can understand how to organize the information within the website.

Affinity diagram is a technique used to gather the ideas and group them based on consensus from the team. Hence this is different from card sorting in that it collects ideas from a group and grouping is done based on team consensus. 

Card sorting is a technique/method used to organize information into logical groups with labels. Though this is majorly used for structuring website navigation and structure, this can be applied to other areas too. It could be done using actual cards, on paper or online card sorting tools. User sorts the cards into the categories that make the most sense to him/her. Card sorting helps you provide a  two-level hierarchy: a category, and its sub-components. It is illustrated through the following diagram

 

 

 

There are different types of card sorting methods

1.      Open card sorting : Users are asked to organise cards into groups which is preferred by them. They're then asked to call each of the groups and then create a label that best describes that group. This method is usually used for new/existing information architectures or organising products on a site or when beginning to create a replacement IA from scratch

2.       Closed card sorting : Users are provided with both the content cards and the category cards and asked to put the cards in the provided categories. This method is mostly used while enhancing an existing site with new content or as a further analysis after open card sorting

3.       Remote card sorting : In this session, a user will work independently via their computers and sort the cards which are provided through an online tool. There are a variety of online software tool options available in the market today that permit you to line up and distribute to as many users as you need for the test

4.       Face to Face sorting : As the name suggests, these sessions are in person. Users are provided with a set of cards and they can think through and provide reasons behind their decisions.

Once data are collected in the types mentioned above, data is analysed for identifying any trends. It is done using cluster analysis software or in a spreadsheet in case sample size is small.

 

Advantages :

Easy and cheap : Studies are simple and cheap

Quick to Execute : Sorting can be done very quickly to yield valuable data in no time

Established : This is an established technique used for a long time

Involves users : Provides a good insight to the users and get them involved

 

Disadvantages  :

Time consuming : In case results are complex, analysing the results can be time consuming since techniques used are simple

Varied results : Results could vary depending on the users chosen for analysis

May not be deep : It could give analysis only at the surface and may not give deeper insights

 

Now lets see how this differs from Affinity Diagram

An Affinity Diagram is very similar and is a tool which gathers large amounts of language data (opinions, issues, ideas) and then organize them into groups based on their natural relationships

This process involves a group or team of people , unlike card sorting, wherein you'll either have single individuals or group them together. This works majorly by collaborating the creativity and intuition that a team possesses. The ideas and insights of different people who have a better idea of the issue is combined in this process . It is always recommended to combine a group say six or seven users while performing affinity diagram process.

 

 

 

Major differences between Card sorting and Affinity Diagram

1.       Affinity diagram aims at organizing the content and generate a discussion whereas Card sorting is aimed at organizing content only

2.       Card sorting is done when data is limited, affinity diagram comes handy when the data is large and has complex logic

3.       Card sorting would give individual analysis output which could vary when looked in  a group where Affinity diagram gives a consensus result from a group which ensures results could be accepted to most

 

 

Card Sorting

Card sorting is an informational architecture technique in researching how people group information into various categories. Information Architecture is a discipline that studies the structure of information and includes taxonomies for various subjects. Card sorting is ideally suited in areas where the categorization of information cannot be done from first principles, where there is a large variety in functions and content. It is a technique in User Experience Design that either uses a set of subject matter experts or end-users to create a category tree. It can be used to categorize and group information that you may want to put on your website, blog, newspaper, workflows, navigation menus, navigation paths, etc., that makes the most sense to the end-user.

The procedure for card sorting is first to identify and write down the key concepts of the design on post-it notes or index cards. The experts or end-users can then either individually or as a group sort out these post-it notes into various categories. They could also establish the structure and relationship between the information and the categories.

Card Sorting is generally used when the number of items is large and there is no acceptable existing taxonomy, the items are very similar to each other making segregation difficult or the heterogeneous nature of end-users makes it difficult to logically and consistently differentiate the items into groups.

Card sorting is useful in the design of new websites or Apps, or to make some improvements to the existing ones. It is also used to assess the expectations of the customer on how they would like the information grouped together on a website, compare how people look at different ideas or concepts, or even rank items based on some designated rules.

Types of Card Sorting

Card sorting can be classified into open card sorting, closed card sorting, reverse card sorting, hybrid card sorting and Delphi card sorting.

In open card sorting the individuals or teams choose the names of the categories by themselves. This will help to determine the terms that they use in categorizing the item. This methodology helps to generate ideas of how to organize the information. Open card slotting could be used to compare a current website or app with the expectations of the customers or to identify the sections into which to categorize a blog or to group products in an online store or design the structure of your help file.

In closed card sorting, a fixed or predetermined list of categories is given to the individual or the team. They are to then categorize the index items into these predetermined categories. This method is evaluative in its design as it determines if the category names are effective in organizing the index cards. Closed sorting could be used to identify the content that people use the most on a website or app, or assess the alignment between the staff, customers, and your companies’ values, or obtain quick design feedback from customers, or assign the priorities to a service or product's features

In a reverse card sorting an existing architecture of categories is tested. This method is also called tree testing.

In hybrid card sorting, the participants sort the items into predetermined categories, however have the option of adding their own categories.

Delphi Card sorting. Celeste Paul has created what is called the modified Delphi Card sort. This method imitates the Delphi method in that after the first person does the card slot, it is handed down the line to the other individuals. Each individual iterates the previous structure thereby improving and refining the structure.

Card Sorting Vs Affinity Diagram. As per rastplatznotizen “Card sorting finds common patterns in the way different people group information, while affinity diagramming obtains a consensus result.” Wikipedia describes card slotting as a way of coming up with an Affinity Diagram. Donna Maurer Spencer uses external people or end-users of the site for card sorting and her own design team for Affinity mapping. One of the main differences between the two is that the Affinity diagram is done in a team and may include a discussion before the content is organized.

References

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Card_sorting

https://www.optimalworkshop.com/learn/101s/card-sorting/

https://twobenches.wordpress.com/2008/10/15/card-sort-vs-affinity-diagramming/

http://uxpod.com/card-sorting-an-interview-with-donna-maurer-spencer/

Card sorting is a technique that is used to assess and finalize a design/process that focuses to organize, giving a structure, and labeling the contents in an effective and sustainable way. Before conducting sessions, it is always better to understand the end-user or end output. Knowing them will help to accurately shape, decide, label, and navigate during the session. These sessions can be steered using actual cards, posits, or other card sorting software tools. 

 

Though this technique is widely used to design websites, the learnings and techniques can be useful in various stages of the continuous improvement journey. This technique has nominal setup cost, can be executed quickly, helps gather insights from many members, and provides a good base.

To conduct an effective Card sorting session, First, we need to identify topics that can be either phrase, words, or specific instructions. Second, we need to choose the mode of conducting these sessions (in person or online). Third, set up the session by explaining the scope and lead the session. Finally, once done collect the data and analyze using a cluster analysis software or manually using Ms excel.  

These sessions can be conducted as one on one, in a group, or in remote sessions, using card sorting software. Based on the expected output we can either do open or closed card sorting. Open card sorting is where the members are free to sort cards into categories and label them, they seem fit. Closed card sorting is where the members are expected to sort the cards into the categories that you as a session lead would have provided.

 
This technique sounds very similar to the affinity diagram, the major objective of these two techniques is different though. Affinity diagram or mapping’s focus is to generate discussion and then sorting. Where are Card sorting the focus is to sort and not discuss and done with the actual users. Further, inputs received from Cart sorting can be further used to brainstorm and gather using affinity diagram/mapping. 

Explain card sorting

Card sorting is a UX research technique used to organize the content in the most logical and user friendly way so that it positively impacts user experience when accessing a website or an application of a product or service. For. e.g. When building a mobile app, card sorting can help the UX team to determine what content has to be presented in each screen. The objective is to make the application easy for users to navigate and fulfil their expected outcomes by improving their experience. 

Use examples to show how it is different from an Affinity Diagram

Though at a high level both card sorting technique and affinity diagrams focus on brainstorming and grouping / classifying inputs into various groups / themes, the usage context is different.

Let's take a fashion / clothing website for example

 

Card sorting as a technique, in this case, can be used to to understand the requirements from the users and categorize the requirements under various themes or headings. E.G. one of the main heading or theme (out of many) can be Men's clothing and the sub themes can be Jackets, Shirts, Trousers etc. Affinity diagram can be used to understand what did users buy at a competitor website, what are the items they could not find in the website, which other website would they visit to make a purchase etc. Affinity Diagram can also be used to brainstorm on solutions. 

However, one of the main difference between card sorting and affinity diagram is that card sorting also- focuses on structuring the content. E.g, "Home" can be the first heading (followed by sub headings), "Contact us" can be the last heading whereas Affinity Diagram only focuses on grouping and prioritizing of ideas

Card sorting is something that I have limited experience with as compared to Affinity Diagram.  Basis my experience the similarity with the two would be is that both as a method to sort information gained from different sources.  Where they start to be different is from the information of their sources.  Usually Affinity Diagram is used when you start organizing the output from brainstorming or ideation sessions conducted from a group or groups that has the intention of providing possible solutions to a predetermined problem or goal of any topic.  On the other hand, card sorting is a method that sorts information that would but with the intention of categorizing and identifying patterns specific to technology - it's content, information and design.  It is specific to a user interface and user experience.  

There are three different types of Card Sorting - open, closed and hybrid.  In the Open Card sorting, this is where participants will categorize the information provided to them based on how they understand it.  For the Closed Card sorting, categorized are predetermined.  Hybrid Card sorting starts out with predetermined categories but at anytime a new category needs to be created then it is added.

So far the type of Card Sorting that I have used would be the Closed Card sorting and Hybrid.  We typically use it before we design the product for development or after we have deployed a tool.  In both cases we want to get feedback on how the information and design would be best received by end users.  

While there are a couple of answers that theoretically explain the differences between card sorting and affinity diagrams, the question was about quoting an example as well. There is only one answer which has attempted that - hence Gopal Menon's answer has been selected as the winning answer.