Challenging Assumption-Based Design Guidance for Social Researchers
Summary
The Government Data Quality Hub (DQHub) has published guidance including posters and accompanying materials to help social researchers identify, challenge, and reframe assumption-based statements during product and service design. The guidance introduces 'red flag' and 'green flag' statements to distinguish between decisions based on opinion versus evidence. The materials promote user-centred and respondent-centred design approaches to improve data quality and fitness-for-purpose from the outset.
What changed
The Government Data Quality Hub has produced a set of posters and accompanying guidance to help social researchers challenge assumption-based design decisions. The guidance identifies 'red flag' statements (opinion and assumption-based) that should be challenged, alongside 'green flag' statements that demonstrate evidence-based decision making. The materials promote user-centred and respondent-centred design approaches in line with government good practice for service design.
This guidance primarily affects social researchers, government agencies, and research institutions involved in service design and survey development. It provides practical tools to ensure decisions are based on up-to-date, well-evidenced user needs rather than assumptions, ultimately improving data quality and reducing burden on service users. No immediate compliance actions are required, but researchers may benefit from reviewing and applying this framework to their design processes.
What to do next
- Review the challenging assumption-based design posters and guidance on the Civil Service Analysis Function website
- Apply the red flag and green flag framework when designing products, services, and surveys
- Contact quality@ons.gov.uk for further information on DQHub's work
Archived snapshot
Apr 16, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
News story
Challenging Assumption-Based Decisions - User Centred Design
Find out more about the Challenging Assumption-Based Design guidance to help social researchers identify, challenge and re-frame assumption-based design.
From: Government Data Quality Hub Published 7 November 2024
The Government Data Quality Hub (DQHub) has recently produced a set of posters and accompanying guidance which aim to help social researchers challenge assumption-based design.
The principles outlined in these posters should aid the identification, challenge and reframing of assumption-based statements during design. In turn, this will aid you to focus on quality and fitness-for-purpose from the outset.
The importance of challenging assumption-based design decisions
It can be all too easy to refer to opinions or assumptions when designing a product or service. Making decisions based upon assumptions risks:
- designing the wrong thing
- creating products or services that are not used or well understood by the intended users
- collecting inaccurate, unreliable, or poor-quality data
- increasing burden on the users of our services To drive good quality from the start, we promote the use of User Centred Design (or Respondent Centred Design if working with surveys). This is in line with government good practice for service design. User-centred design is defined as learning about the needs of those who will use your service and designing it to meet them.
It is important to take on board and understand the needs of the users of those services, rather than making assumptions based upon our own feelings. Without carrying out research with users, there is a risk of not understanding:
- what problems needs to be solved
- what to build
- if the service being created will work well for those who need to use it
What the posters and guidance are for
There are some phrases to listen out for when designing services and products that show evidence is not being used to inform design decisions. We have called these ‘red flag’ statements.
Each poster gives an example of common red flag statements which are can be sometimes heard when designing new products and services. The red flag statements are informed by opinions and assumptions, which means they should be challenged.
Next to these red flag statements are examples of ‘green flag’ statements. These statements give examples of what to listen out for to ensure decisions are being made on evidence rather than opinion.
Our posters enable assumption-based statements to be challenged. They aim to help ensure decisions are based upon up to date, well-evidenced user needs.
Get in touch
If you would like to find out more about DQHub’s work, or if you have any questions, please do get in touch with quality@ons.gov.uk.
Additional guidance
You can also take a look at our other guidance pieces and courses. These provide further advice on designing surveys and questionnaires in a user-centred way, putting quality at the heart of design. These are:
- The three levels of respondent centred design
- Questionnaire design guidance
- Data Collection Fundamentals Course
- User-centred design approach to surveys
- Survey Development Toolkit
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Published 7 November 2024
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