How Contextual Research Can Transform Your UX Research

[jrineakter]

Let’s say you’re working on an assistance app for teachers. To really understand how they would use it, you need to see them in the classroom, where they’re multitasking and dealing with constant interruptions.

Observing them in action can help you spot real challenges, such as managing technology while teaching. This approach will help you design a solution that fits into their daily routine.

Studies show that 42% of customers are willing to pay more for a friendlier, more welcoming experience, and companies that focus on customer experience have more engaged employees.

Contextual research provides valuable insights for creating designs that meet user needs. In this blog post, we'll explore contextual research, its key steps, and examples to guide you in your own research.

What is contextual research?
Contextual research involves observing your app users in their natural context to understand their actions and how their thoughts affect those actions.

This practical approach will help you witness belgium number data how people use your app, identify the features they like, and become more customer-centric .

Contextual research versus field study
With a field study, you're in the middle of an emergency room, silently observing how nurses work and trying to understand their day-to-day life so you can create an effective app for them using UX design tools . But you don't interact with them.

With contextual research, you connect with them.

This is how contextual research differs from field research.

Field of Study: High Interaction: Involves active engagement with participants. Low Interaction: Primarily uninterrupted observation. User Role: High: Users lead the session as subject matter experts. Low: Users are passive subjects being observed. Flexibility: High: Adaptable to participants’ needs. Low: Less adaptable; follows a predetermined observation plan. Depth of Insight: High: Provides deep insight into users’ motivations and context. Low: Provides broad insight into users’ behavior.

Key components of contextual research
What people say, what people do and what they say they do are completely different things.

Margaret Mead, American cultural anthropologist

The contextual research method allows you to observe all aspects of user interaction to understand what matters.

Let's review the three principles of contextual research.

1. Observation
To gain real insights, enter the user's world: be a fly on the wall in their work environment, at home, or wherever they interact with the product.

Designing a faster scanning system for a barista? Keep an eye out for shortcuts, clever workarounds, or sideways glances. Every sigh or glance at the clock is a clue. Jot it all down.

This first-hand observation will give you a raw, unfiltered view of what they do, why they do it, and what motivates—or frustrates—them.

2. Research
Now is the time to talk to users through a contextual interview.

You have two options:

Passive question: Let them finish and ask them: "What was going through your mind?"
Active questioning: Intervene in the middle of the task with questions like, "What made you click?"
Both approaches allow us to understand the reasons behind their actions.

3. Documentation
It’s time to document the results Gather notes, videos, and photos from contextual interviews—even the blurry ones where users seem ready to throw away their devices.

Every detail counts, from the " Oh, I didn't know that! " moments to the frustrated looks.

This information is a goldmine for spotting patterns and guiding users in the design process . Well-documented findings will support presentation to stakeholders of what works, what doesn't, and why.