Context-Driven Testing
Quick Context Analysis:
- Mission: "Find important problems fast enough to matter" (not "execute test cases")
- Risk: Safety-critical = high rigor; internal tool = lighter touch
- Constraints: Startup with tight timeline ≠ enterprise with compliance
- Skills: Novice needs structure; expert adapts intuitively
Critical Success Factors:
- No "best practices" work everywhere - only good practices in context
- Testing is investigation, not script execution
- Context changes; your approach should too
Quick Reference Card
When to Use
- Making testing decisions for new project
- Questioning "that's how it's done" dogma
- Adapting approach to specific constraints
- Exploratory testing sessions
RST Heuristics
| Heuristic |
Application |
| SFDIPOT |
Structure, Function, Data, Interfaces, Platform, Operations, Time |
| Oracles |
Consistency with history, similar products, expectations, docs |
| Tours |
Business District, Historical, Bad Neighborhood, Tourist, Museum |
Context-Driven Decisions
Example: Test Automation Level
Startup Context:
- Small team, rapid changes, unclear product-market fit
- Decision: Light automation on critical paths, heavy exploratory
- Rationale: Requirements change too fast for extensive automation
Enterprise Context:
- Stable features, regulatory requirements, large team
- Decision: Comprehensive automated regression suite
- Rationale: Stability allows automation investment to pay off
Example: Documentation
Regulated (FDA/medical):
- Decision: Detailed test protocols, traceability matrices
- Rationale: Regulatory compliance isn't optional
Fast-paced startup:
- Decision: Lightweight session notes, risk logs
- Rationale: Bureaucracy slows more than it helps
Agent-Assisted Context-Driven Testing
// Agent analyzes context and recommends approach
const context = await Task("Analyze Context", {
project: 'e-commerce-platform',
stage: 'startup',
constraints: ['timeline: tight', 'budget: limited'],
risks: ['payment-security', 'high-volume']
}, "qe-fleet-commander");
// Context-aware agent selection
// - qe-security-scanner (critical risk)
// - qe-performance-tester (high volume)
// - Skip: qe-visual-tester (low priority in startup context)
// Adaptive testing strategy
await Task("Generate Tests", {
context: 'startup',
focus: 'critical-paths-only',
depth: 'smoke-tests',
automation: 'minimal'
}, "qe-test-generator");
Agent Coordination Hints
Memory Namespace
aqe/context-driven/
├── context-analysis/* - Project context snapshots
├── decisions/* - Testing decisions with rationale
├── discoveries/* - What was learned during testing
└── adaptations/* - How approach changed over time
Fleet Coordination
const contextFleet = await FleetManager.coordinate({
strategy: 'context-driven',
context: {
type: 'greenfield-saas',
stage: 'growth',
compliance: 'gdpr-only'
},
agents: ['qe-test-generator', 'qe-security-scanner', 'qe-performance-tester'],
exclude: ['qe-visual-tester', 'qe-requirements-validator'] // Not priority
});
Practical Tips
- Start with risk assessment - List features, ask: How likely to fail? How bad? How hard to test?
- Time-box exploration - 2 hours checkout, 30 min error handling, 15 min per browser
- Document discoveries - Not "Enter invalid email, verify error" but "Payment API returns 500 instead of 400, no user-visible error. Bug filed."
- Talk to humans - Developers, users, support, product
- Pair with others - Different perspectives = different bugs
Related Skills
Remember
With Agents: Agents analyze context, adapt strategies, and learn what works in your situation. Use agents to scale context-driven thinking while maintaining human judgment for critical decisions.
1---
2name: context-driven-testing
3description: "Apply context-driven testing principles where practices are chosen based on project context, not universal 'best practices'. Use when making testing decisions, questioning dogma, or adapting approaches to specific project needs."
4category: testing-methodologies
5priority: high
6tokenEstimate: 1100
7agents: [qe-fleet-commander, qe-regression-risk-analyzer, qe-requirements-validator, qe-quality-analyzer]
8implementation_status: optimized
9optimization_version: 1.0
10last_optimized: 2025-12-02
11dependencies: []
12quick_reference_card: true
13tags: [context-driven, rst, exploratory, heuristics, oracles, skilled-testing]
14trust_tier: 0
15validation:
16---
17
18# Context-Driven Testing
19
20<default_to_action>
21When making testing decisions or adapting approaches:
221. ANALYZE context: project goals, constraints, risks, team skills
232. QUESTION practices: "Why this? What risk does it address? What's the cost?"
243. INVESTIGATE not just check: Does software solve the problem, or create new ones?
254. ADAPT approach based on context, not "best practices"
265. DOCUMENT discoveries, not pre-written plans
27
28**Quick Context Analysis:**
29- Mission: "Find important problems fast enough to matter" (not "execute test cases")
30- Risk: Safety-critical = high rigor; internal tool = lighter touch
31- Constraints: Startup with tight timeline ≠ enterprise with compliance
32- Skills: Novice needs structure; expert adapts intuitively
33
34**Critical Success Factors:**
35- No "best practices" work everywhere - only good practices in context
36- Testing is investigation, not script execution
37- Context changes; your approach should too
38</default_to_action>
39
40## Quick Reference Card
41
42### When to Use
43- Making testing decisions for new project
44- Questioning "that's how it's done" dogma
45- Adapting approach to specific constraints
46- Exploratory testing sessions
47
48### RST Heuristics
49| Heuristic | Application |
50|-----------|-------------|
51| **SFDIPOT** | Structure, Function, Data, Interfaces, Platform, Operations, Time |
52| **Oracles** | Consistency with history, similar products, expectations, docs |
53| **Tours** | Business District, Historical, Bad Neighborhood, Tourist, Museum |
54
55---
56
57## Context-Driven Decisions
58
59### Example: Test Automation Level
60
61**Startup Context:**
62- Small team, rapid changes, unclear product-market fit
63- **Decision:** Light automation on critical paths, heavy exploratory
64- **Rationale:** Requirements change too fast for extensive automation
65
66**Enterprise Context:**
67- Stable features, regulatory requirements, large team
68- **Decision:** Comprehensive automated regression suite
69- **Rationale:** Stability allows automation investment to pay off
70
71### Example: Documentation
72
73**Regulated (FDA/medical):**
74- **Decision:** Detailed test protocols, traceability matrices
75- **Rationale:** Regulatory compliance isn't optional
76
77**Fast-paced startup:**
78- **Decision:** Lightweight session notes, risk logs
79- **Rationale:** Bureaucracy slows more than it helps
80
81---
82
83## Agent-Assisted Context-Driven Testing
84
85```typescript
86// Agent analyzes context and recommends approach
87const context = await Task("Analyze Context", {
88 project: 'e-commerce-platform',
89 stage: 'startup',
90 constraints: ['timeline: tight', 'budget: limited'],
91 risks: ['payment-security', 'high-volume']
92}, "qe-fleet-commander");
93
94// Context-aware agent selection
95// - qe-security-scanner (critical risk)
96// - qe-performance-tester (high volume)
97// - Skip: qe-visual-tester (low priority in startup context)
98
99// Adaptive testing strategy
100await Task("Generate Tests", {
101 context: 'startup',
102 focus: 'critical-paths-only',
103 depth: 'smoke-tests',
104 automation: 'minimal'
105}, "qe-test-generator");
106```
107
108---
109
110## Agent Coordination Hints
111
112### Memory Namespace
113```
114aqe/context-driven/
115├── context-analysis/* - Project context snapshots
116├── decisions/* - Testing decisions with rationale
117├── discoveries/* - What was learned during testing
118└── adaptations/* - How approach changed over time
119```
120
121### Fleet Coordination
122```typescript
123const contextFleet = await FleetManager.coordinate({
124 strategy: 'context-driven',
125 context: {
126 type: 'greenfield-saas',
127 stage: 'growth',
128 compliance: 'gdpr-only'
129 },
130 agents: ['qe-test-generator', 'qe-security-scanner', 'qe-performance-tester'],
131 exclude: ['qe-visual-tester', 'qe-requirements-validator'] // Not priority
132});
133```
134
135---
136
137## Practical Tips
138
1391. **Start with risk assessment** - List features, ask: How likely to fail? How bad? How hard to test?
1402. **Time-box exploration** - 2 hours checkout, 30 min error handling, 15 min per browser
1413. **Document discoveries** - Not "Enter invalid email, verify error" but "Payment API returns 500 instead of 400, no user-visible error. Bug filed."
1424. **Talk to humans** - Developers, users, support, product
1435. **Pair with others** - Different perspectives = different bugs
144
145---
146
147## Related Skills
148- [agentic-quality-engineering](../agentic-quality-engineering/) - Context-aware agent selection
149- [holistic-testing-pact](../holistic-testing-pact/) - Adapt holistic model to context
150- [risk-based-testing](../risk-based-testing/) - Context affects risk assessment
151- [exploratory-testing-advanced](../exploratory-testing-advanced/) - RST techniques
152
153---
154
155## Remember
156
157**With Agents:** Agents analyze context, adapt strategies, and learn what works in your situation. Use agents to scale context-driven thinking while maintaining human judgment for critical decisions.
proffesor-for-testing