Synthesize

Find contradictions

Find where the evidence disagrees: between people, between what someone says and does, and between the numbers and the talk.

How to do it

1. Pick the evidence, plus any synthesis you want to test.
2. Read each tension with both sides side by side.
3. Decide which tensions are real differences between groups and which need more research.

Tip. Synthesis tends to smooth disagreements away. Tensions are often where the most useful insight is.

What you need

Start from:

• At least 2 of: Interview notes, Survey results, Analytics, Test report or Desk research

It is better with: Insight, Persona, Affinity map or Web source.

What you get: Tensions

A tensions template has these sections:

• Between people
• Say vs do
• Data vs talk
• What it undercuts
• Open questions

Where it fits

• Define (Double Diamond): Agree the one problem worth solving, and for whom.

Usually comes after

• Run an interview
• Run usability tests
• Scan the web

What to do next

• Write a readout
• Build a survey
• Check what new evidence changes

Templates that use it

• Evaluative study: Does this design work for the people who will use it?
• Exploratory study: We don’t know the problem well yet: why do people do what they do?
• Double Diamond: A whole project, from understanding a problem to a tested answer.
• Jobs to be done: Why do people start using, switch to or leave a product like yours?