What is Contextual Inquiry?
Contextual Inquiry is a broad term for the technique of observing users in their environments as they interact with your products and services. Contextual Inquiry may include placing a researcher at a common point of contact (e.g. at a point of sale) to intercept people during natural interactions with a service, or it may involve a researcher following a single person through their experiences across several different environments (e.g. shadowing a person at work).
Because the analysis happens in a real-world setting, researchers can observe actual behaviours that may otherwise be unobservable in a laboratory setting or a virtual call. By watching participants within the context of use, participants are less reliant on memory, and researchers can study the different factors that will influence someone’s behaviour under normal circumstances.
When is it used?
Contextual Inquiry often occurs in the discovery phase of the design process, where there is a need for rich information about the work practices and tools users use, as well as the social, technical, and physical environments that influence them.
It can answer questions such as:
- What tools and equipment are users using?
- What other actors are users interacting with, and why?
- What constraints and difficulties are users facing?
- What workarounds are being used by users?
- What are the needs, wants, desires, and frustrations users have?
It is particularly beneficial in situations with complex environments and lots of interaction between equipment and people and where the design team is uncertain about what those interactions are or how successful they are in fulfilling user needs in those situations.
Other approaches
In occasions where it may not be appropriate or logistically feasible to have a researcher observe a participant directly, Diary Studies may be used to gather contextual insight into real-world interactions without having the researcher present.
In a Diary Study, participants record observations of themselves in a physical or digital record and complete tasks set by the researcher to summarise their experience. While this approach is more indirect, it may potentially reduce the influence of the moderator on the participant.
Additionally, many people can participate in the research simultaneously, meaning a larger sample size may be obtained more quickly.
Sometimes, it may not be necessary or appropriate to conduct fully contextual research, and interviewing participants about past experiences may be a better approach.
Our expert advice can help you decide which approach is right for your research requirements.
Want to conduct a contextual inquiry?
Bunnyfoot has always prioritised evidence capture and valid, bespoke study designs to truly understand the nature of user engagement, interactions, and behaviours, in a holistic way.
If you would like to talk about how we can support you with gaining a deeper understanding of your audience so you can make evidence-driven design decisions, we’d love to talk!
