Carol Lee, a Clinical Scientist, discusses code review anxiety, debunking myths, coping strategies, and the value of team dynamics. They emphasize confidence-building through practice, self-awareness, and empathy. Insights include cognitive distortions, secrets management, and managing anxiety through teamwork and rational thinking.
Code review anxiety affects developers at all levels, not just juniors; improving code quality alone isn't the solution.
Addressing cognitive biases, challenging biased thinking, and exposure can help reduce code review anxiety.
Maintaining a healthy detachment from code, viewing it as a discovery, not a personal creation, can alleviate anxiety and foster community in teams.
Deep dives
Understanding and Reducing Code Review Anxiety
Code review anxiety is a common experience for developers regardless of experience level. Common myths around code review anxiety include it being perceived as a junior developer issue and the solution being writing better code. Research suggests that code review anxiety affects individuals across all levels of experience and cannot solely be addressed by improving code quality.
Impact of Cognitive Behavioral Approaches
A randomized control trial was conducted to address code review anxiety using cognitive behavioral approaches. The study involved managing physiological symptoms, challenging biased thinking, and engaging in exposure to reduce avoidance behavior. Participants were taught to identify and address cognitive biases leading to anxious thoughts when preparing for code reviews.
Personal Identity and Coping Strategies
Maintaining a healthy detachment from code and viewing it as a separate entity from personal identity can help alleviate code review anxiety. De-centering from overidentification with code and viewing it as a discovery rather than a personal creation can assist in managing the fear of judgment during code reviews.
Benefits of Code Reviews
Code reviews not only enhance code quality but also provide mentorship opportunities and foster a sense of community among team members. Research indicates that engaging in code reviews can lead to improved learning of new skills and methods, benefiting both individuals and the team.
Developing Coping Mechanisms
Creating frameworks for dealing with anxiety-inducing situations, such as code reviews, can help in reducing stress and improving overall performance. Flexibility in applying these coping mechanisms is crucial, ensuring they are not rigidly enforced. Structured approaches like detaching oneself from the stressors can result in better handling of anxiety and promoting self-growth within software development teams.
Carol Lee (Clinical Scientist) shares her research on code review anxiety. We dive deep into her recent research paper “Understanding and Effectively Mitigating Code Review Anxiety”. We get into all the nooks and crannies of this topic — common code review myths, strategies for coping, the need for awareness and self-reflection, the value of exposure and practice to build confidence, the importance of team dynamics, respect, empathy, and connection, and more. This show is jam-packed with goodies for everyone…and we even give a nod to the work we did on our podcast Brain Science.
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