Shortcut Taking Under Time Pressure: A New Theoretical Prediction Based on Adaptive Learning Theory
Jong Seok Lee · Academy of Management Proceedings · 2022
Shortcut taking is a deliberate choice made by software developers to save time and meet a tight deadline, but it tends to result in reduced software quality. Prior research examined a link between time pressure and software developers’ shortcut taking and, by using a game-theoretical model, concluded that shortcut taking can be reduced when a greater level of time pressure is induced. This study adopts a new theoretical perspective by drawing on adaptive learning theory and aims to shed new light on software developers’ shortcut taking under time pressure. By using computer simulations, this study illustrates how creating time pressure by setting tight deadlines can actually promote software developers’ shortcut taking. Specifically, when there is no time pressure, choosing to produce high-quality work is a safe alternative that guarantees the timely completion of an assigned task with no additional cost. Therefore, under no time pressure software developers prefer the high-quality work alternative over the shortcut taking alternative which entails risk (e.g., incurring technical debt). However, as time pressure increases both the high-quality alternative and the shortcut taking alternative entail the risk of not meeting the estimated net value (e.g., missing a deadline, incurring technical debt, etc.), albeit the latter is a riskier alternative. When neither alternative represents a sure, safe option, software developers become more willing to choose the riskier alternative.