Research · Beginner · 25 min
Turn assumptions into research questions
Separate what a team believes from what it knows, and write questions research can answer.
Context
A gym owner says: "Members leave because our app is ugly. They want a modern app with workout videos and a social feed so they can compete with friends." There is no research behind this.
Your prompt
List the assumptions hidden in the owner's statement, rank them by risk, and write research questions for the riskiest three.
Instructions
- Break the statement into separate assumptions (for example "members leave", "because of the app").
- For each, write how confident the team should be and what evidence exists.
- Rank by risk: how bad would it be if this were wrong and the team built on it?
- Write one open research question for each of the top three assumptions.
- Suggest one method for each question.
Expected deliverables
- An assumptions table with risk ranking
- Three research questions with methods
Completion checklist
3 items
Evaluation criteria
- Assumptions are atomic (one idea each).
- Questions do not presuppose the answer.
Hints and an illustrative solution
Show hints
- "Do members want workout videos?" presupposes the solution. "What do members do to plan workouts today?" does not.
- Membership cancellation data could test "members leave" quickly.
Show one possible solution
This is one reasonable answer, not the only one. Compare reasoning, not pixels.
Assumptions include: members are leaving faster than normal; the app causes cancellations; "ugly" is the problem; members want videos; members want social competition; members use the app at all. The riskiest is that the app causes cancellations. Research question: "What are the main reasons members cancel, and at what point in their membership?" Method: review cancellation reasons and interview six recent leavers.