High performance thinking using the power of language

Summary
This is the first article in the series of twelve articles “XII Perspectives to High Performance QA”, outlining interesting & counter intuitive perspectives to high performance QA aligned on four themes of Language, Thinking, Structure & Doing.

In this article under the ‘LANGUAGE’ theme we examine how language helps in enabling a mindset of brilliant clarity to ‘High Performance Thinking”. Here I outline how various styles of writing, various sentence constructs & sentence types play a key role in the activities we do, as a producer of brilliant code from the QA angle.

Introduction

When we communicate using a language, we use various styles of writing, various sentence constructs and sentence types. Now, are these just meaning for writing? Well, not really. Language is not just for writing/speaking, it plays a significant part in our thinking process. Here is an interesting TEDx talk titled “Language shapes the way we think”.

Once we are comfortable with a language, we “think” in that language. We use different writing styles, use different sentences types & constructs (in the mind) to understand, describe, specify, evaluate and report. Language is made of syntax ’the rules’ and content ‘the semantics’. The syntax shapes the what & how to understanding of content.

High performance QA demands great clarity of thought

It is about ‘seeing’ the system in your mind and run through situations that may be interesting. It is about seeing the gaps, the missing elements that result in questions to aid in completing the picture. It is about transforming your mind to that of the end user(s) and analysing the system.

Good clarity is like water, clear and transparent, the dirt may colour it but not alter it. It flows freely taking any shape without losing itself. To be like water is Zen-like, a state when the creative juices flow best. Language plays a key role to this clarity, as a vehicle to express our inner thoughts via various styles that we can use to express.

Let us take a quick look at the language aspects commencing with ‘writing styles’ and then going to sentence types & constructs.

Writing styles [1]

The four different types of writing styles are :

1. Expository — The main purpose is to explain, a subject-oriented writing style, focusing on telling about a given topic/subject without voicing personal opinion(s).
2. Descriptive — The main purpose is to describe, focusing describing a character, an event, or a place in great detail.
3. Persuasive — The main purpose is to convince. Unlike expository writing, persuasive writing contains opinions and biases of author. To convince others to agree with the author’s point of view, persuasive writing contains justifications and reasons.
4. Narrative — The main purpose is to tell a story, using characters and what happens to them sometimes writing from their point of view.

Sentence Types [2]

There are four main types of sentences:

1. Simple or Declarative Sentence — Used to state information, a commonly used sentence type. An example of this is “Research on the topic suggests that grammar is essential to success.”
2. Command or Imperative Sentence — Used to give commands or make requests. An example of this ”Open the window.”
3. Question or Interrogative Sentence — Used to ask questions. An example of this is “Did you complete the assignment?”
4. Exclamatory Sentence — Used to express emotion. An example of this is “She is going to fall!”

Sentence Constructs [3]

There are four main types of sentences:

1. Simple sentence — An independent clause, requiring only one punctuation mark at the end (a full stop, exclamation or question mark). An example of this is “The essay was late.”
2. Compound sentence — Made by joining simple sentences that are closely related in content. An example of this is “The essay was late, so he lost marks.”
3. Complex sentence — Made by combining an independent clause with a dependent clause. An example of this is “Because his essay was late, he lost marks.”
4. Compound Complex sentence — Made by combining a compound with a complex sentence i.e two independent clauses with at least one dependent clause. An example of this is “Even though the professor was exhausted, she continued to grade assignments, and she stayed awake until they were all done.”

Now let us look at the activities we do as a producer of brilliant code in the role of QA and examine how language elements can enable “high performance thinking”.

(1) Understanding

Understanding intent, expectations is a key element to good testing, and switching into the role of end users (persona) is useful here. Using expository, narrative or descriptive styles from the user point of view to explain, narrate and describe expectations using simple/complex sentences of declarative construct is what can make user stories clear. Jumping onto the other side donning the hat of QA and using interrogative construct with simple expository sentences enables one to ask interesting questions to fill the white spaces.

(2) Analysis & simplification

Any non-trivial thing is presumed complex. A true hallmark of good understanding is de-mystification, that of making it simple. From a language perspective, it is about summarising, of describing in short simple sentences not exceeding a paragraph. Sensitising to this style of syntax facilitates one to stay sharp and crisp.

(3) Goal setting & planning

Setting a clear goal of ‘what-to-test’ and ‘what-to-test-for’ is necessary to ensure clarity in what we need to do, and ensure that we have indeed done this well enough. An imperative style using short simple sentence type forces us to establish a clear baseline. For example a customer requirement may be stated as “The administrator shall be able to ….” while an example of technical feature is “The system shall provide ….”. Note that a descriptive or a narrative style is a strict no-no here. The imperative style used in a complex sentence can capture the acceptance criteria too.

As for a planning, a descriptive style of simple sentences using imperative constructs captures the list of actions to do, that essentially becomes the a crisp and comprehensive task list.

(4) Designing

Good design is key to just enough yet adequate scenarios, to ensure effectiveness. Thinking in terms of conditions & combinations comes in handy irrespective of the type of test being designed for. An imperative construct is the way to do this, with choice of sentences being any one of the four as it depends on the complexity of the entity being designed, with the style being expository.

The evaluation scenario is best written as an action to be performed, that is the imperative style. For example“Ensure that the system does blah when bleh.”

(5) Execution & reporting

To enable clean execution, clear instructions of steps to do is necessary. This can also enable anyone else to convert the steps into automated scripts. Expository sentences using simple/complex sentences with imperative construct is very useful here.

Post execution, we may need to clearly document issues found and activities done to facilitate good management. With the intent of describing as to what the defect is, the construct that is best suited is ‘Declarative’. On the other hand, describing how to reproduce the defect is about doing a set of actions, best communicated using ‘Imperative’ construct. ‘Exclamatory’ constructs are best avoided so as to stay professional and not upset human emotions. Simple sentences that can be one of expository, descriptive, narrative is recommended. However certain parts of report are better described using a graphical language with the simplest being structured diagrams like graphs.

(6) Analysis & retrospecting

Analysis requires sifting and summarisation that can be aided by simple/complex sentences employing decorative and imperative constructs. Suggestions require a persuasive writing style.

(7) Note taking

This is really the free form part, the part that we jot down everything we observe, learn from past. This is one part that we cannot stick to one style of syntax. This is a mixture of all mentioned above as appropriate with terseness being key. Using a non-linear style as pictures, mind maps can be far more useful here than plain text.

Summary

Clarity is often a reflection of the mind and great clarity implies an uncluttered mind. The style & structure of sentence matters to the way we think, understand, design, act and analyse. Syntax (structure) is a great guide to enabling clarity. Syntax used in a rote matter may be seen as restrictive, but clearly it marks the path to clarity.

Our job as a producer of brilliant code in the role of QA is interesting. Buffeted by strong headwinds like incomplete information , incorrect information, and time pressure, we are expected to stay clear on the course. A great language skill can cut through these and ensure that we stay on course.

Appendix

1. “Four Different Types of Writing Styles: Expository, Descriptive, Persuasive, and Narrative” at https://owlcation.com/humanities/Four-Types-of-Writing
2. “Types of Sentences” at http://plato.algonquincollege.com/applications/guideToGrammar/?page_id=3243
3. “Sentence structure” at https://www2.le.ac.uk/offices/ld/resources/study-guides-pdfs/writing-skills-pdfs/sentence-structure-v1.0.pdf

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CLICK HERE to read the previous article
“Three communication approaches to brilliant clarity”