Cognitive Dispositions of IS Personnel and Implications for Pair Programming

The dominance of traditional heavyweight software development methodologies is being challenged by the advent of lightweight or agile methodologies that stress the need to be nimble and adaptive in a world where change is inevitable. A singularly distinctive feature of these new methodologies is their emphasis on people and their interactions. In a development environment that relies heavily on collaborative decision-making in all aspects of software development, an understanding of the cognitive dispositions of developers and their implications is imperative. This paper delineates a framework by reviewing the literature on cognitive dispositions of IS personnel. The implications of these findings for Pair Programming, a core concept in Extreme Programming, and the research issues that emerge as a consequence are also presented.