In this post, I will briefly explain how behavioral modeling relates to functional modeling and structural modeling.
In a previous post, I explained how functional modeling, structural modeling, and behavioral modeling work together to describe a whole system. I provided the definitions for each model based on my understanding of chapters 4, 5, and 6 of Systems Analysis and Design: An Object-Oriented Approach with UML by Alan Dennis, Barbara Haley Wixom, and David Tegarden.
How is behavioral modeling related to functional and structural modeling?
Let us start by understanding when these models take place in the software development lifecycle (SDLC). Before any of these models can be used, the system analyst must first have identified the requirement definitions.
After the system requirements are known, functional modeling translates the requirements into use cases. Next, structural modeling takes the refined requirements in functional modeling to identify the systems’ objects, attributes, and relationships. After that, behavior modeling uses the information identified in functional and structural modeling to communicate how objects interact and communicate based on the use cases.
According to Dennis et al.:
Structural models describe the underlying structure of an object-oriented system. Whereas functional models provide an external view of the evolving system (i.e., what the system does), structural models provide an internal static view of the evolving system (i.e., how the objects are organized in the system) (22).
In short, behavioral modeling relates to functional and structural modeling by describing the behavior and relationship of the system objects identified in structural modeling to achieve the business processes identified in functional modeling.
References
Dennis, A., Wixom, B. H., & Tegarden, D. P. (22). Systems analysis and design: An object-oriented approach with UML. John Wiley & Sons.