image: Emotions are an important factor that must be taken into account when designing any type of software. This is the conclusion reached through a research project coordinated by the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid that analyzes the role played by feelings in the users and developers of computer systems. view more
Credit: UC3M
This press release is available in Spanish.
Starting with the premise that emotions are key elements in human behavior, this study investigates their importance in software engineering. Specifically, the study focuses on the engineering of requirements, a crucial phase in software development that includes tasks related to determining the needs and conditions that the system must satisfy. Good requirements must be measurable, testable and they must have no ambiguities or contradictions... but things aren't always that way. "In the world of computer system development consultants, I have often met disappointed users whose unhappiness was produced by a deficient collection of requirements", states one of the authors of the research study, Ricardo Colomo, of UC3M's Computer Science Department. With this study, the researchers are attempting, among other things, to find a rigorous explanation of this problem.
In order to do this, these scientists applied a tool of social psychology to the field of requirement engineering: the affect grid created by J. A. Rusell. "This instrument provides emotional outlines for different versions of the requirements, in addition to facilitating an analysis of the emotions of those involved in the development of the system", explains Ricardo Colomo. The results that were obtained show that emotions are a factor that must be taken into account when negotiating and establishing requirements. "We have discovered – he points out – that the most evolved versions of requirements incline the user toward emotions that are closer to relaxation". Another conclusion that the researchers have reached involves the different ways that the main participants in this context, the users and the development team, face different situations. "The developers suffer greater stress than the users, although with the final versions of the requirements the scores tend to even out", the professor sums up.
This study, which has been published in the Journal of Universal Computer Science in collaboration with researchers from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid and the Universidad de Murcia (Complutense University of Madrid and the University of Murcia), can be applied in other fields and is part of a broader line of research that analyzes the importance of the human factor in Information and Communication Technology (ICT). In this field, a recent study that was carried out in the US - the professor indicates – has shown that listening to music improves the performance of some systems analysts. "It is fascinating and enriching to work in this field", affirms Colomo, who is currently also studying the implications of multiculturalism in the process of software development.
More information:
Title: Using the Affect Grid to Measure Emotions in Software Requirements Engineering. Authors: Ricardo Colomo Palacios, Cristina Casado Lumbreras, Pedro Soto Acosta and Ángel García Crespo. Source: Journal of Universal Computer Science, volume 17. Number: 9 (2011)
More images: http://www.flickr.com/photos/eventosuc3m/sets/72157629298563597/
Journal
JUCS - Journal of Universal Computer Science