test-driven-development

Test-driven development prevents regressions by requiring explicit tests before production code, ensuring behavior aligns with expectations and catching failures early during feature work and bug fixes.

The red-green-refactor cycle is a test-driven development process: write a failing test, implement the minimal code to pass it, then refactor iteratively to improve design and maintain code quality.

To start test-driven development, write a failing unit test defining the feature's expected behavior, then implement the smallest amount of production code needed to make that test pass.

Yes, test-first development applies to bug fixes across software projects by guiding teams to write a failing test reproducing the defect before implementing the minimal code correction.

Test-driven development does not mandate specific frameworks; it enforces a test-first workflow applicable across software projects, relying on explicit unit tests to document requirements and guide implementation.

Test-driven development is less suitable for exploratory prototypes where requirements are undefined, as it requires explicit tests to document behavior and guide the minimal implementation cycle.