tdd

Test-Driven Development

Philosophy

Core principle: Tests should verify behavior through public interfaces, not implementation details. Code can change entirely; tests shouldn't.

Good tests are integration-style: they exercise real code paths through public APIs. They describe what the system does, not how it does it. A good test reads like a specification - "user can checkout with valid cart" tells you exactly what capability exists. These tests survive refactors because they don't care about internal structure.

// GOOD: Tests observable behavior
test("user can checkout with valid cart", async () => {
  const cart = createCart();
  cart.add(product);
  const result = await checkout(cart, paymentMethod);
  expect(result.status).toBe("confirmed");
});

// GOOD: Verifies through interface
test("createUser makes user retrievable", async () => {
  const user = await createUser({ name: "Alice" });
  const retrieved = await getUser(user.id);
  expect(retrieved.name).toBe("Alice");
});

Characteristics of good tests:

• Tests behavior users/callers care about
• Uses public API only
• Survives internal refactors
• Describes WHAT, not HOW
• One logical assertion per test

Bad tests are coupled to implementation. They mock internal collaborators, test private methods, or verify through external means (like querying a database directly instead of using the interface). The warning sign: your test breaks when you refactor, but behavior hasn't changed.

// BAD: Tests implementation details
test("checkout calls paymentService.process", async () => {
  const mockPayment = jest.mock(paymentService);
  await checkout(cart, payment);
  expect(mockPayment.process).toHaveBeenCalledWith(cart.total);
});

// BAD: Bypasses interface to verify
test("createUser saves to database", async () => {
  await createUser({ name: "Alice" });
  const row = await db.query("SELECT * FROM users WHERE name = ?", ["Alice"]);
  expect(row).toBeDefined();
});