Structured programming
lastmod 2025-12-10created 2015-06-182 edits
Structured programming can be regarded as a subset of procedural programming, which is a kind of programming paradigm. It is best known for eliminating the GOTO statement or reducing dependence on it.
It is a programming approach developed in the late 1960s by Professor E. W. Dijkstra of the Netherlands. Every program consists of only three elements, sequence, selection (branching), and iteration, so programs are written as combinations of these three basic constructs. Traditionally, the flow of program logic at a decision point would, depending on the result, go back or jump several steps ahead. In structured programming, however, once you start from a single starting point, the logic flow branches out at each decision point, so there is no need to go backward or skip ahead. This is called the TOP DOWN approach.
This method was devised mainly to prevent the confusion caused by going backward or skipping when writing programs, to speed up work, and to prevent errors. Therefore, programs written this way can be written quickly and accurately, and modifications are handled clearly and concisely, raising program productivity and significantly reducing maintenance costs.