BDD
Definition
Behavior-Driven Development (BDD) is an agile software development process that encourages collaboration between developers, QA and non-technical or business participants in a software project. It extends TDD by writing tests in a natural language that non-programmers can read.
Why It Matters
BDD aims to close the communication gap between business and technical teams. By defining application behavior in plain English, it ensures that everyone has a shared understanding of what the software should do before it is built.
Contextual Example
A BDD test for a login feature might be written in a format like Gherkin: `Given I am on the login page, When I enter valid credentials, Then I should be redirected to the dashboard.` This describes the behavior without mentioning technical implementation details.
Common Misunderstandings
- BDD is not a replacement for TDD; it is a higher-level approach that complements it. The steps described in BDD scenarios are often implemented and verified using unit or integration tests.
- Tools like Cucumber and SpecFlow are commonly used for BDD.