Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
CHAPTER 1
SOFTWARE QUALITY CONCEPTS
1.1
WHAT IS QUALITY
The American Heritage Dictionary defines quality as “a characteristic or attribute of
something.” Quality is defined in the International Organization for Standardization
(ISO) publications as the totality of characteristics of an entity that bear on its ability
to satisfy stated and implied needs.
Quality is a more intriguing concept than it seems to be. The meaning of the
term “Quality” has evolved over time as many concepts were developed to improve
product or service quality, including total quality management (TQM), Malcolm
Baldrige National Quality Award, Six Sigma, quality circles, theory of constraints
(TOC),Quality Management Systems (ISO 9000 and ISO 13485), axiomatic quality
(El-Haik, 2005), and continuous improvement. The following list represents the
various interpretations of the meaning of quality:
“Quality: an inherent or distinguishing characteristic, a degree or grade of ex-
cellence” (American Heritage Dictionary, 1996).
“Conformance to requirements” (Crosby, 1979).
“Fitness for use” (Juran & Gryna, 1988).
“Degree
to
which
a
set
of
inherent
characteristic
fulfills
requirements”
ISO 9000.
