01
What counts as a cascade
The study tracks later corrective work that is materially related to a prior implementation or repair. Relationship is not inferred from sequence alone. Evidence can include changed behavior, affected contracts, issue context, tests, architectural ownership, review history, and the reason the subsequent pull request became necessary.
02
Introduced versus exposed defects
A later correction can repair a defect introduced by an earlier change, complete work that was architecturally incomplete, or address a previously latent defect that the earlier change merely exposed. These mechanisms are distinct and must not be collapsed into a claim that every corrective PR represents damage caused by the immediately preceding PR.
03
Why the sequence matters
Repeated corrective propagation can indicate that the unit of repair was smaller than the underlying ownership or invariant boundary. It can also result from unrelated confounders. The study therefore evaluates chronology together with causal evidence, repair-unit type, proof behavior, graph state, and competing explanations.
Evidence boundary
What this entry supports
Corrective PR cascade is a research coding concept. Candidate patterns remain observations or candidate findings until the study’s adjudication process supports a stronger classification.
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