Documenting User Research Findings: A Knowledge Management Approach for Traceability and Reuse

Effective documentation is important for traceability and reuse in User Experience (UX) research, yet current practices are often fragmented and inconsistent. This paper explores what UX research documentation entails, what information is needed across the human-centered design process, and how different artifacts relate to one another. Based on an exploratory review of prior work and insights gathered during a barcamp session with 21 UX practitioners, the authors, including two highly experienced UX practitioners, developed a three-phase model (planning, documentation, and reuse). This model, created after the barcamp and informed by both the session findings and their extensive professional experience, organizes documentation around topics, methods, and results. The barcamp revealed key requirements for documentation tools (including collaboration, structure, visualization, traceability, and reusability) that guided the development of the model. Our approach addresses these needs and offers a foundation for more consistent and flexible documentation workflows. We conclude by outlining future steps toward tool evaluation and community-driven standards.