Matrixx0070 Research Synthesis
When to use
Use this after interviews, usability sessions, surveys, or support-ticket dumps, when you have a pile of observations and need to know what they mean and what to do. Turns scattered notes into decisions the team can act on.
Not for: planning or running the study (use dsn-user-research), quantitative significance testing on large survey samples, or writing insights you wish the data showed — synthesis is bounded by evidence.
Method
- Collect the raw signal. Pull discrete observations — quotes, behaviors, errors, workarounds — each tagged with its source participant. Keep them atomic: one observation per note.
- Cluster bottom-up. Group by affinity into themes. Let groupings emerge; do not force notes into a theme you hoped to find.
- Elevate to insights. Per theme, write an insight: what users need or struggle with and why. An insight explains a pattern; it is not a restated observation.
- Weight the evidence. State how many participants and which sources back each insight. Decision: backed by 1 participant → label "anecdote / hypothesis", not "finding"; 3+ across sources → a finding you can act on.
- Flag contradictions and gaps. Note where participants disagreed and what remains unanswered.
- Recommend. Convert insights into prioritized, actionable recommendations tied to evidence — never one the data cannot back.
Example
Six of eight participants abandoned at the payment step; four said the CVV field was "hidden". Theme: payment friction. Insight (6/8): users lose confidence when required fields are visually de-emphasized. Recommendation (high): promote CVV to a first-class field — addresses the drop-off. A lone participant wanting Apple Pay is logged as a hypothesis, not a finding.
Pitfalls
- Top-down clustering: sorting notes into pre-decided buckets confirms bias instead of finding truth.
- Restating an observation and calling it an insight — an insight must explain why.
- Reporting frequency vaguely ("many users") instead of X/N with sources.
- Recommending a solution the evidence does not reach, or skipping contradictions that complicate the story.
Output format
# Research Synthesis: <study> (n=<participants>)
**Top findings:** insight — supported by X/N — representative quote
**Themes:** theme — observations behind it
**Contradictions / open questions:** ...
**Recommendations (prioritized):** action — insight it addresses — confidence
Every insight cites its evidence; anything speculative is labeled a hypothesis, not a finding.