design-research-study

Design Research Study

Purpose

Help teams design a research study that is rigorous enough to produce reliable, comparable findings — whether for usability testing, concept evaluation, diary studies, or observational research.

Skill type

Conceptual skill

Use this skill when

• A research question requires more structure than an informal interview
• Research needs to be repeatable across participants or time periods
• A study design needs review before execution
• Multiple research methods need to be combined in a single study

Do not use this skill when

• A simple user interview plan is sufficient (use run-user-interviews)
• The goal is synthesizing completed research (use synthesize-qualitative-research)

Required inputs

• Research question or goal
• Participant profile

Optional inputs

• Prototype or designs to evaluate (for usability studies)
• Prior research findings
• Constraints: time, budget, access to participants
• Required output format (report, deck, video clips)

Upstream context

Works best when:

• Research scope has been defined
• UX research plan exists

Downstream handoff

Output can feed:

• run-usability-testing (study design → test execution)
• analyze-usability-findings (study design defines analysis frame)
• synthesize-qualitative-research (study design informs synthesis approach)

Instructions

1. Define the study goal and specific research questions.
2. Select the research method(s): usability test, concept test, diary study, contextual inquiry, survey.
3. Design the protocol: task order, stimuli, questions, time allocation.
4. Define the participant profile and screening criteria.
5. Define how data will be captured: notes, recordings, observations.
6. Define analysis approach and success criteria.
7. Pilot the protocol before running with real participants.

Output

Provide:

• Study goal and research questions
• Method selection with rationale
• Study protocol (task list, questions, time plan)
• Participant profile and screening criteria
• Data capture plan
• Analysis approach and success criteria
• Pilot plan
• Known risks and mitigations

Risks / caveats

• Unstructured studies produce inconsistent data that is hard to synthesize
• Pilot sessions are not optional — they catch protocol flaws before wasting participant time
• Moderator bias is real: train whoever is running the study