Behavior Driven Development

BDD (Behavioral Driven Development) is a software development approach that was developed from Test Driven Development (TDD).

BDD includes test case development on the basis of the behavior of software functionalities. All test cases are written in the form of simple English statements inside a feature file, which is human-generated. Acceptance test case statements are entirely focused on user actions.

BDD is written in simple English language statements, not in a typical programming language. BDD improves communication between technical and non-technical teams and stakeholders.

Let's understand through an example, how we can develop test cases on the basis of the behavior of a particular function.

In the following example, we are going to take the login function of a web application.

Example:

In order to ensure the working of Login Functionality, we are developing acceptance test cases on the basis of BDD.

Feature: Login Function
To enter in the System  
User must be able to 
Access software when login is successful 
Scenario: Login
Given User has its Email  
And Password  
When User enters the correct Email and Password  
Then It should be logged in
Scenario: Unsuccessful Login
When User enters either wrong Email or Password  
Then It should be reverse back on the login page with an error message

Need to Choose BDD

TDD works satisfactorily unless the business owners are familiar with the use of the unit testing. Also, their technical skills should strong enough, which is not always possible.

In these circumstances, BDD is advantageous because test cases are written in a common English language, which is easily understandable by all stakeholders.

The familiar, easily understandable language is the most significant advantage of using BDD because it plays a vital role in cooperation between technical and non-technical teams to perform a task with better efficiency.

Characteristics of BDD

Strong collaboration

BDD provides a strong collaboration between involved parties. It is just because of easy test cases which are written in the English language. In cucumber testing, stockholders play a vital role in constructive discussions as only they know the expectations from the software.

High Visibility

Everyone gets strong visibility in the progress of the project due to the easy English language.

The software design follows the business value

BDD gives great importance to business value and needs. By setting priorities with the client, depending on the value provided by them, developers are able to give a better result because they have a strong understanding of how the customer thinks.

The Ubiquitous Language

As mentioned earlier, test cases are written in the ubiquitous language, which is understandable by all the members of the team, whether they are from a technical field or not. This helps to reduce misconceptions and misunderstanding between the members related to concepts. Ubiquitous language makes easy joining of new members into the working.

Software development meets the user need.

BDD focuses on the business's needs so that users can be satisfied, and of course, satisfied users imply a growing business. With BDD, tester focuses on the behavior which has more impact than the implementation.

More confidence from the developers' side

The teams using BDD are generally more confident because they do not break the code, and when it comes to their work, a better forecast is done.

Lower Costs

By improving the quality of the code, BDD basically reduces the cost of maintenance and minimizes the risks of the project.