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

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 proc...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Empirical software engineering : an international journal 2010-06, Vol.15 (3), p.250-276
Main Authors: Falessi, Davide, Babar, Muhammad Ali, Cantone, Giovanni, Kruchten, Philippe
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Architecture (computers)
Communities
Compilers
Computer programs
Computer Science
Design engineering
Empirical analysis
Experience Report
Interpreters
Programming Languages
Replication
Software
Software engineering
Software Engineering/Programming and Operating Systems
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Summary: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.
ISSN:1382-3256
1573-7616
DOI:10.1007/s10664-009-9121-0