Theoretical and Empirical Validation of Software Product Measures

L. Briand, K. El-Emam, and S. Morasca

International Software Engineering Research Network technical report # ISERN-95-03.

Abstract:

In this paper we present a concrete method for validating software product measures for internal attributes and provide guidelines for its application. This method integrates much of the relevant previous work, such as measurement theory, properties of measures, and GQM. We identify two types of validation: theoretical and empirical. The former addresses the question "is the measure measuring the attribute it is purporting to measure?", and the latter addresses the question "is the measure useful in the sense that it is related to other variables in expected ways?"

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