Debugging And Testing Questions Medium
Behavior-driven development (BDD) is a software development approach that focuses on collaboration and communication between developers, testers, and business stakeholders. It aims to ensure that the software being developed meets the desired behavior and fulfills the business requirements.
BDD is an extension of Test-driven development (TDD) and shares many similarities with it. However, there are some key differences between the two approaches.
1. Language and Focus: BDD emphasizes using a common language that is easily understandable by all stakeholders involved in the development process. It encourages the use of a domain-specific language (DSL) that allows non-technical stakeholders to participate actively. TDD, on the other hand, primarily focuses on writing tests using programming languages.
2. User Stories and Acceptance Criteria: BDD places a strong emphasis on defining user stories and acceptance criteria before writing any code. These user stories and acceptance criteria serve as the basis for creating test scenarios and driving the development process. TDD, on the other hand, focuses on writing tests that verify the behavior of individual units or components of the code.
3. Test Structure: BDD tests are structured in a way that they are easily readable and understandable by all stakeholders. They are written in a Given-When-Then format, where the Given section sets up the initial state, the When section describes the action being performed, and the Then section defines the expected outcome. TDD tests are typically written in a more technical manner, focusing on the specific inputs and outputs of the code being tested.
4. Collaboration and Communication: BDD encourages collaboration and communication between developers, testers, and business stakeholders throughout the development process. It promotes discussions and clarifications on the desired behavior and requirements, ensuring that everyone has a shared understanding. TDD, while also promoting collaboration, primarily focuses on the technical aspects of writing tests and code.
In summary, BDD is an approach that extends TDD by emphasizing collaboration, communication, and a common language to ensure that the software being developed meets the desired behavior and fulfills the business requirements. It places a strong emphasis on user stories, acceptance criteria, and readable test scenarios, making it more accessible to non-technical stakeholders.