Unmoderated research in Lookback is designed to remain qualitative, even when no researcher is present.
Rather than optimizing for speed or volume alone, Lookback’s unmoderated methods focus on capturing context, reasoning, and behavior - the same ingredients that make moderated research valuable.
Unmoderated does not mean unobserved
In unmoderated research, participants complete sessions on their own time, without a live researcher guiding them.
What changes is who is present - not what is captured.
Unmoderated sessions in Lookback still:
record screen and audio
encourage participants to speak aloud
preserve full session context
produce video-based evidence
They are designed so researchers can still understand why something happened, not just whether it happened.
Two unmoderated approaches: Tasks and SelfTest
Lookback supports unmoderated research through two closely related approaches:
Tasks
Tasks are structured, step-by-step prompts designed to guide participants through specific activities.
Tasks can include:
speak-out-loud prompts
text input questions
single-choice questions
multiple-choice questions
Tasks are well suited for:
evaluating flows or concepts
understanding decision-making
comparing behavior across participants
SelfTest
SelfTest is a more flexible, exploratory unmoderated approach.
It is often used when:
structure should be lighter
participants are encouraged to explore freely
context and narrative matter more than strict steps
Both Tasks and SelfTest produce the same kind of session evidence and can coexist within the same Project.
Unmoderated sessions stream live
A key differentiator in Lookback is that unmoderated sessions stream live as they happen.
This allows researchers and stakeholders to:
begin analysis immediately
spot misunderstandings early
validate task clarity
stay close to raw evidence
Live streaming ensures that unmoderated research does not become invisible or detached from the research process.
Preserving the why without a live researcher
Unmoderated research introduces challenges:
participants may misunderstand instructions
participants may forget to speak aloud
answers may be partial or vague
Lookback addresses these challenges through:
careful task design
prompts that encourage reflection
AI-assisted follow-ups (when enabled)
The goal is not to automate research, but to preserve researcher intent in an asynchronous setting.
When to use unmoderated research
Unmoderated research is especially useful when you need to:
reach participants across time zones
collect evidence at scale
explore behavior in more natural contexts
iterate quickly between rounds
It works particularly well when combined with moderated research - using each method where it is strongest.
Unmoderated research is not lower-quality research
Unmoderated research in Lookback is not a shortcut.
It is a deliberate method choice that trades:
real-time clarification
forflexibility and scale
Because sessions are still recorded as rich evidence, insights remain grounded and comparable to moderated work.
How unmoderated research fits with other methods
Within a Project, unmoderated research often complements:
moderated sessions for depth and clarification
AI-moderated research for improved asynchronous quality
All findings remain connected at the Project level, allowing patterns to emerge across methods.
What to explore next
To go deeper into unmoderated research:
Learn how Tasks work in detail
Explore SelfTest and when to use it
See how AI moderation improves data quality without replacing researchers