Mob programming is an emergent practice in the industry, attracting increasing attention from the research community. Superficially a simple concept – similar to pair programming, but with more people – many of the same concerns arise as with pair programming, only more so: can it truly be efficient, is it for everybody, and what are the benefits and risks involved? In this paper we show that while research interest in this topic is increasing, much of the published literature to date constitutes experience reports, with a number of implicit differences in how mob programming is practiced. To transform mob programming from an area of avant-garde experimentation into a well understood practice in the toolbox of mainstream software engineering, such implicit differences need to be exposed, analyzed and documented, and the contextual enabling factors must be investigated. In this paper we take an important step in that direction by identifying variations in the practice and providing concrete guidance for creating an organizational and social environment where mob programming can be practiced both effectively and safely.

Mob 编程是业界的新兴实践，越来越受到研究界的关注。表面上是一个简单的概念——类似于结对编程，但涉及的人更多——许多与结对编程相同的问题出现了，但更多的是：它是否真的有效，是否适合所有人，以及涉及的好处和风险是什么？在本文中，我们表明虽然对该主题的研究兴趣正在增加，但迄今为止发表的大部分文献都构成了经验报告，在如何实践 mob 编程方面存在许多隐含的差异。为了将 mob 编程从一个前卫的实验领域转变为主流软件工程工具箱中的一个很好理解的实践，需要暴露、分析和记录这些隐含的差异，必须调查背景促成因素。在本文中，我们朝着这个方向迈出了重要的一步，确定了实践中的变化，并为创建一个组织和社会环境提供了具体的指导，让 mob 编程可以有效和安全地实践。