TY - JOUR

T1 - Applying empirical software engineering to software architecture: challenges and lessons learned

AU - Falessi, Davide

AU - Babar, Muhammad Ali

AU - Cantone, Giovanni

AU - Kruchten, Philippe

PY - 2010/6

Y1 - 2010/6

N2 - In the last 15 years, software architecture has emerged as an important software engineering field for managing the development and maintenance of large, software-intensive systems. Software architecture community has developed numerous methods, techniques, and tools to support the architecture process (analysis, design, and review). Historically, most advances in software architecture have been driven by talented people and industrial experience, but there is now a growing need to systematically gather empirical evidence about the advantages or otherwise of tools and methods rather than just rely on promotional anecdotes or rhetoric. The aim of this paper is to promote and facilitate the application of the empirical paradigm to software architecture. To this end, we describe the challenges and lessons learned when assessing software architecture research that used controlled experiments, replications, expert opinion, systematic literature reviews, observational studies, and surveys. Our research will support the emergence of a body of knowledge consisting of the more widely-accepted and well-formed software architecture theories.

AB - In the last 15 years, software architecture has emerged as an important software engineering field for managing the development and maintenance of large, software-intensive systems. Software architecture community has developed numerous methods, techniques, and tools to support the architecture process (analysis, design, and review). Historically, most advances in software architecture have been driven by talented people and industrial experience, but there is now a growing need to systematically gather empirical evidence about the advantages or otherwise of tools and methods rather than just rely on promotional anecdotes or rhetoric. The aim of this paper is to promote and facilitate the application of the empirical paradigm to software architecture. To this end, we describe the challenges and lessons learned when assessing software architecture research that used controlled experiments, replications, expert opinion, systematic literature reviews, observational studies, and surveys. Our research will support the emergence of a body of knowledge consisting of the more widely-accepted and well-formed software architecture theories.

KW - Software architecture

KW - Empirical software engineering

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=77954757381&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1007/s10664-009-9121-0

DO - 10.1007/s10664-009-9121-0

M3 - Journal article

VL - 15

SP - 250

EP - 276

JO - Empirical Software Engineering

JF - Empirical Software Engineering

SN - 1382-3256

IS - 3

ER -