Software Quality Assurance Practice Exam

Which of these describes the mechanism that requires each branch direction to be traversed at least once?

1. Decision/condition

2. Multiple-Condition

3. Decision

4. Condition

The correct answer is: Decision

The correct choice is grounded in the understanding of control flow testing, specifically in the context of decision coverage. Decision coverage is a testing criterion that aims to ensure that every possible outcome of a decision point (such as an if statement) is executed at least once during testing. This means that for every branch of a control structure, testers must create test cases that will follow each possible path through that decision, thereby validating it. For example, in the case of an if-else statement, decision coverage requires that both the true and false paths are exercised at least once. Thus, by ensuring that each decision point is fully tested, the software's reliability and correctness can be supported and verified effectively. The other options might concern different aspects of software testing. Multiple-Condition testing often deals with evaluating multiple conditions in a single decision, while Conditions may refer more generally to the criteria within decision points without emphasizing the requirement to traverse each branch. However, specifically referring to it as "Decision" encapsulates the idea of following each branch direction to ensure comprehensive coverage of decision outcomes.