SyNTHESIS / ANALySIS TECHNIqUE 03 Affinity Diagramming Affinity diagramming is a process used to externalize and meaningfully cluster observations and insights from research, keeping design teams grounded in data as they design. As long as research data is stored as tacit knowledge in people's minds or buried in interview tran- scripts, teams will experience difficulty synthesizing what has been observed and learned. Affinity diagramming helps designers capture research-backed insights, observations, concerns, or require- ments on individual sticky notes, so that the design implication of each can be fully considered on its own. Notes are then clustered based on affinity, which form into research-based themes. Two common research variations of affinity diagramming include: Affinity Diagramming for Contextual Inquiry: Once researchers have conducted interviews of typical workers from four to six different work sites, there should be enough representative data to complete an affinity diagram. Before the affinity diagramming session, record on average 50­100 observations of each person interviewed. Each observation should be on its own sticky note (be sure that notes reference their original interview transcript, in case a question comes up about it). Once created, notes are posted on a wall that is covered in sheets of large-format paper (which allows the affinity diagram to be moved, if necessary), and the team can begin the rigorous process of inter- preting notes and considering the underlying significance of each. Notes that share a similar intent, problem, or issue--or that share an affinity--are clustered together. Out of this work, a story emerges about people, their tasks, and the nature of their problems. 1 1. Holtzblatt, Karen, and Hugh Beyer. Contextual Design: A Customer-centered Approach to Systems Design. San Francisco, CA: Morgan Kaufmann, 1998. 2. See note 1 above. 3. See note 1 above. Further Reading The affinity diagram was introduced in the 1960s, alongside the KJ Technique, by Jiro Kawakita, a Japanese anthropologist. See: Kawakita, Jiro. The Original KJ Method. Tokyo: Kawakita Research Institute, 1982. Kuniavsky, Mike. Observing the User