Abstract Team autonomy—the extent to which teams can make decisions—is a central tenet of agile development. When scaling agile, technical and coordination challenges necessitate restricting autonomy. While greater autonomy is often considered better, the reasons for, and the extent to which, autonomy is, or should be, restricted in large-scale agile development remain poorly understood. In this paper, we address this gap by analyzing large-scale agile frameworks using decision-making theory. Applying inductive thematic analysis to the primary documents of scaling frameworks, we identify and categorize their decisions and related decision-making elements by decision-maker, decision type, decision-making style, decision timing, and affected artifacts. This research contributes to decision-making knowledge by providing a systematic categorization of decision points in large-scale agile development. For practitioners, the resulting classification helps identify key decision points, define roles and responsibilities, and plan team autonomy in large-scale agile.

Context: Traditional awareness programs on privacy and information security in the public sector are often perceived as unengaging and ineffective in promoting lasting behavioral change. Human error remains a key vulnerability, and there is growing interest in more engaging approaches such as gamification. Objective: This study investigates whether gamification can enhance privacy and information security awareness among public servants, and identifies the organizational factors that influence its perceived feasibility. Method: We conducted a quantitative survey with 518 Brazilian public servants working in Information and Communications Technology (ICT), using descriptive and inferential statistical analysis, including non-parametric tests and ordinal logistic regression, to analyze perceptions of traditional and gamified approaches, engagement elements, and institutional readiness. Results: Respondents rated traditional methods as moderately effective but lacking in engagement. Gamification was perceived as more motivating and effective for knowledge retention, and as having the potential to support awareness and perceived behavioral improvement. Key adoption barriers included organizational culture and lack of understanding, while leadership support and institutional encouragement of innovation emerged as the main enablers. Multivariate analysis further shows that organizational factors are the strongest predictors of perceived feasibility, while prior experience with gamification also has a significant effect and individual knowledge-related characteristics do not. Conclusion: Gamification is perceived as a promising and feasible strategy for improving awareness training in the public sector. However, its successful adoption depends on overcoming cultural resistance and ensuring institutional support. The findings provide empirical evidence to guide future implementations and inform the design of privacy and security training policies.

Background: Several researchers report the impact of gender on software development teams, especially in relation to women. In general, women are under-represented on these teams and face challenges and difficulties in their workplaces. When it comes to women who are mothers, these challenges can be amplified and directly impact these women’s professional lives, both in industry and academia. However, little is known about women ICT practitioners’ perceptions of the challenges of maternity in their professional careers. Objective: This paper investigates mothers’ challenges and difficulties in global software development teams. Method: We conducted a survey with women in the ICT field who work in academia and global technology companies. We surveyed 141 mothers from different countries and employed mixed methods to analyze the data. Results: Our findings reveal that women face sociocultural challenges, including work-life balance issues, bad jokes, and moral harassment. The prejudices they suffer make them insecure and with low confidence in the work performed. Furthermore, they usually do not have a supporting network during and after maternity leave, which culminates in them feeling overloaded. The surveyed women suggested a set of actions to reduce the challenges they face in their workplaces, such as: creating a code of conduct for men and childcare within companies. Conclusion: Women face many challenges when they become mothers. Our findings explore these challenges and can help organizations in developing policies to minimize them. Also, it can help raise awareness of co-workers and bosses, toward a more friendly and inclusive workplace.

Software development involves many activities, and decision making is an essential one. Various factors can impact a decision-making process, and by understanding such factors, one can improve the process. Since people are the ones making decisions, some human-related aspects are amongst those influencing factors. One such aspect is the decision maker’s personality. This research investigates the relationship between decision-making style and personality within the context of software project development. We conducted a survey in a population of Brazilian software engineers to gather data on their personality and decision-making style. Data from 63 participants was gathered and resulted in the identification of seven statistically significant correlations between decision-making style and personality (personality factor and personality facets). Furthermore, we built a regression model in which decision-making style (DMS) was the response variable and personality factors the independent variables. The backward elimination procedure selected only agreeableness to explain 4.2% of DMS variation. The model accuracy was evaluated and deemed good enough. Regarding the moderation effect of demographic variables (age, educational level, experience, and role) on the relationship between DMS and Agreeableness, the analysis showed that only software engineers’ role has such effect. This paper contributes toward understanding the relationship between DMS and personality. Results show that the personality variable agreeableness can explain the variation in decision-making style. Furthermore, someone’s role in a software development project can impact the strength of the relationship between DMS and agreeableness.

Integrating value-oriented perspectives into the principles and practices of software engineering is critical to ensure that software development and management activities address all key stakeholders' views and also balance short-and-long-term goals. This is put forward in the discipline of Value-Based Software Engineering (VBSE). In this paper, a mapping study of VBSE is detailed. We classify evidence on VBSE principles and practices, research methods, and the research types. This mapping study includes 134 studies located from online searches, and backward snowballing of references. Our results show that VB Requirements Engineering (22%) and VB Planning and Control (19%) were the two principles and practices mostly investigated in the VBSE literature, whereas VB Risk Management, VB People Management and Value Creation (3% respectively) were the three less researched. In terms of the research method, the most commonly employed method is case-study research. In terms of research types, most of the studies (28%) proposed solution technique(s) without empirical validation.

Context From a point of view, software development is a set of decisions that need to be made while the software is developed. Many alternatives should be considered, such as the technology to employ, or the most important features to implement. However, many factors can influence one’s decision-making, such as the decision maker’s personality. Objective This paper reports the state of the art with regard to the relationship between decision-makers’ personality and decision-making aspects. Method We conducted a Systematic Literature Review to search and analyze published primary studies that discuss the abovementioned relationship in the context of companies that develop any kind of product or service. Results Despite the recognized influence of personality in decision-making activities, we were not able to find any study in Software Engineering field that discusses this relationship. We included 15 studies and most of them are from Management field, excluding one from Information System field. From these studies, we identified 75 reported relationships between 28 different personality aspects and 30 different decision-making aspects. Conclusion The interest in this topic born on 80’s and it has grown after 2002. However, despite the number of reported relationships, and the number of personalities and decision-making aspects investigated, more research on this topic is necessary. In particular, it is important to verify how someone’s personality influences the decision-making considering the software development context. This can help in improving how a decision is made in software engineering context.

This paper presents the scenario of the Engineering courses of the Faculty UnB Gama (FGA) in relation to the number of male newcomers versus the number of female ones. It is possible to see, through analysis of the data collected, that the number of male students is much higher than that of female ones, from the creation of the campus in the second semester of 2008 until now. This occurs despite FGAs efforts in promoting the Engineering courses on campus using an experimental laboratory, through the Girls in Computing Program, supported by the National Council of Scientific and Technologic Development (CNPq), in partnership with the high schools of the region. Lectures are also conducted, focused on the female public, and looking do debunk the idea that Engineering is a typically male-oriented course, and trying to awaken the vocational interest of women towards Engineering. Through the surveys focused in the low rate of women in engineering courses, some things come up: (1) the lack of stimuli from family and friends when they intend to graduate in this field, and (2), in a way, the stigmatized role of women in Engineering.

One of the most important knowledge area on Software Engineering is Requirements Engineering and know properly related techniques and methods is crucial to a software practitioners. This article aims to present a method adopted to teach Requirements Engineering and Process Modelling on Software Engineering undergraduate course. It was developed a method to integrate two disciplines and improve learning of both. This method was used during two semesters, with 95 students involved. The reaching of teaching method was analyzed in two ways: grades and feedback on technical report analysis, in both were applied some statistical techniques in order to get better conclusions. The teaching methodology using shows good results, but it is important gather more data in order to provide more assured conclusions.

During the initial software specification phase, requirement document, use cases description and interface prototypes can be generated as a way to aid in the construction of system data. The consistency among these documents is a quality attribute which must be emphasized at this phase of the software development process. The QualiCES method is presented herein; it allows assessing the consistency among these software documents, and is supported by a checklist and by a consistency metrics developed to this end. As benefits, there is defect detection and a software quality warranty from the beginning of software development. The method was executed in a case study. Based on the results, the viability for applying the method can be verified, as well as the proposal innovation degree.