  Emerging agile software development methods are people oriented development
approaches to be used by the software industry. The personal software process
(PSP) is an accepted method for improving the capabilities of a single software
engineer. Five original hypotheses regarding the impact of the PSP to
individual performance are tested. Data is obtained from 58 computer science
students in three university courses on the master level, which were held in
two different educational institutions in Finland and Denmark. Statistical data
treatment shows that the use of PSP did not improve size and time estimation
skills but that the productivity did not decrease and the resulting product
quality was improved. The implications of these findings are briefly addressed.
