DELIBERATION PROCESS MECHANISM FOR SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT

Abstract

The early portion of software development process is missing automated support for many important activities that help firm up requirements and control the system design and evolution to satisfy customers’ real needs.

This thesis introduces an improved formal model for requirements elicitation and evolution along with an implemented software tool based on the model. This tool with its associated database and other artifacts enabled by the model is used to capture stakeholders’ criticisms to requirements and map these criticisms into the model objects to be used in synthesizing a set of open issues to be resolved.

These issues are resolved by examining and modifying requirements if necessary, and then propagating the change down in the requirements hierarchy in a consistent and controlled manner.

The issue resolution process is conducted by all relevant stakeholders supported by automated deliberation facility embedded in our software implementation of an enhanced formal deliberation model. The objects and process assist stakeholders to individually evaluate and judge different available alternatives to resolve an issue.

This outcome of the deliberation process is a change request that identify the affected requirement component in the requirements hierarchy that should be manipulated (added, changed, and/or deleted) to resolve the issue. The outcome reflects the group decision of selecting one of the available alternatives to resolve the issue.