Empirical Software Engineering Issues. Critical Assessment and Future Directions

This book constitutes the thoroughly refereed post-proceedings of the International Dagstuhl-Seminar on Empirical Software Engineering, held in Dagstuhl Castle, Germany in June 2006. The 54 revised full papers in this state-of-the-art survey are organized in topical sections on the empirical paradigm, measurement and model building, technology transfer and education, as well as roadmapping.

Session 1 The Empirical Paradigm.- The Empirical Paradigm Introduction .- Approaches for Empirical Validation.- Techniques for Empirical Validation.- Status of Empirical Research in Software Engineering.- Position Papers.- Aggregation of Empirical Evidence.- Empirical Evaluation in Software Engineering: Role, Strategy, and Limitations.- New Opportunities for Empirical Research.- Empirical Paradigm: Position Paper.- The Value of Empirical Evidence for Practitioners and Researchers.- Exploration Versus Confirmation.- Empirical Paradigm – The Role of Experiments.- The Role of Controlled Experiments in Software Engineering Research.- Position Papers.- Creating Real Value in Software Engineering Experiments.- From Silver Bullets to Philosophers’ Stones: Who Wants to Be Just an Empiricist?.- Social and Human Aspects of Software Engineering.- Longitudinal Studies in Evidence-Based Software Engineering.- The Use of Grounded Theory in Empirical Software Engineering.- Historical Review.- Exploration and Confirmation: An Historical Perspective.- Working Group Results.- Combining Study Designs and Techniques Working Group Results.- Optimizing Return-On-Investment (ROI) for Empirical Software Engineering Studies Working Group Results.- The Role of Controlled Experiments Working Group Results.- Discussion and Summary.- The Empirical Paradigm Discussion and Summary.- Session 2 Measurement and Model Building.- Measurement and Model Building Introduction.- Data Sharing.- Data Collection, Analysis, and Sharing Strategies for Enabling Software Measurement and Model Building.- Knowledge Acquisition in Software Engineering Requires Sharing of Data and Artifacts.- Effective Data Interpretation.- Effective Data Interpretation.- Software Support Tools and Experimental Work.- Position Papers.- Measurement and Interpretation of Productivity and Functional Correctness.- Synthesising Research Results.- On the Quality of Data.- Working Group Results.- Potential of Open Source Systems as Project Repositories for Empirical Studies Working Group Results.- Data Sharing Enabling Technologies Working Group Results.- Documenting Theories Working Group Results.- Discussion and Summary.- Measurement and Model Building Discussion and Summary.- Session 3 Technology Transfer and Education.- Technology Transfer and Education Introduction.- Technology Transfer.- Empirical Studies as a Basis for Technology Transfer.- Position Papers.- Relationships and Responsibilities of Software Experimentation.- The (Practical) Importance of SE Experiments.- How to Improve the Use of Controlled Experiments as a Means for Early Technology Transfer.- Extending Empirical Studies to Cover More Realistic Industrial Development and Project Management Issues.- Empirical Case Studies in Industry: Some Thoughts.- Software Process Simulation Frameworks in Support of Packaging and Transferring Empirical Evidence.- Structuring Families of Industrial Case Studies.- Education.- Empirical Software Engineering: Teaching Methods and Conducting Studies.- Educational Objectives for Empirical Methods.- Position Papers.- On “Landscaping” and Influence of Empirical Studies.- Involving Industry Professionals in Empirical Studies with Students.- Working Group Results.- Industry-Research Collaboration Working Group Results .- Teaching Empirical Methods to Undergraduate Students Working Group Results.- Discussion and Summary.- Technology Transfer and Education Discussion and Summary.- Roadmapping.- Empirical Software Engineering Research Roadmap Introduction.- Working Group Results.- Roadmapping Working Group 1 Results.- Roadmapping Working Group 2 Results.- Roadmapping Working Group 3 Results.- Roadmapping Working Group 4 Results.- Discussion and Summary.- Empirical Software Engineering Research Roadmap Discussion and Summary.