name
clarification-strategies
description
Strategies for auditing specifications and reducing ambiguity. Use when running /sddp-clarify or whenever an agent needs to critique a requirement.
Clarification Strategies
Ambiguity Audit Patterns
Patterns to identify weak requirements in
spec.md
:
- The "Adverb Trap"
Pattern
: "quickly", "easily", "efficiently", "seamlessly".
Critique
: "Define 'quickly'. <200ms? <1s? Define 'easily'. How many clicks?"
Goal
: Convert subjective adverbs to measurable metrics.
- The Passive Voice
Pattern
: "The user is notified..." / "The data is processed..."
Critique
: "WHO notifies? Email? SMS? Toast? WHAT processes? Background job? Synchronous call?"
Goal
: Identify specific actor and mechanism.
- The "Unspecified Scale"
Pattern
: "Handle user uploads" without size limits.
Critique
: "Max file size? Allowed types? Expected concurrency?"
Goal
: Define boundary constraints for Plan phase.
- The "Missing Failure Mode"
Pattern
: "User logs in successfully."
Critique
: "Wrong password? Locked account? DB down?"
Goal
: Ensure error paths defined in User Scenarios.
- The "Scope Creep" Detector
Pattern
: "Integration with 3rd party providers" (plural) when one suffices for MVP.
Critique
: "Which specific providers for V1? Can we limit to one?"
Goal
: Narrow scope, reduce complexity.
Questioning Protocol
When generating questions:
Group by Impact
: Security > Scope > UX > Technical.
Propose a Default
: "Should we default to JWT for auth, or do you have a specific requirement?"
Limit Volume
: Max 8 critical questions at a time.
Reference Lines
: Point to specific line in
spec.md
where ambiguity exists.