Research

What we study

Research lines

1. 01.

   Experimentation methodology, replication and evidence synthesis

   We develop and evaluate methods to design, analyse, report and replicate software engineering experiments, including families of experiments, crossover designs and meta-analysis. We also study what makes evidence unreliable, such as statistical errors, publication bias and researcher bias.

   Natalia Juristo, Sira Vegas, Óscar Dieste

2. 02.

   Causal inference and observational studies in mining software repositories

   We adapt study designs from epidemiology, such as retrospective and prospective cohort studies and matching, to draw causal conclusions from software repository data. Recent studies examine how microservice adoption, code smells and static-analysis configurations affect development outcomes.

   Sira Vegas, Natalia Juristo

3. 03.

   Test-driven development and software testing

   We run families of experiments in universities and companies to measure how test-driven development and testing techniques affect quality and productivity. We also examine how developers perceive testing effectiveness and how measurement instruments influence experimental results.

   Óscar Dieste, Sira Vegas, Natalia Juristo

4. 04.

   Requirements engineering and human factors

   We study empirically how the experience, domain knowledge and cognitive abilities of analysts shape requirements elicitation and inspection. We also investigate cognitive biases in software engineering.

   Óscar Dieste, Natalia Juristo

5. 05.

   Usability and human-computer interaction

   We investigate how to build usability into software development, from usability mechanisms and patterns to the evaluation of chatbots and collaborative modelling tools. In digital health, we design and evaluate mobile applications for older adults.

   Xavier Ferré, Francy D. Rodríguez, Natalia Juristo

6. 06.

   Agile, rapid and continuous software engineering

   We study how companies measure and manage quality, especially quality requirements, in agile and rapid software development. This work combines case studies and design science with industrial partners.

   Pilar Rodríguez

7. 07.

   Artificial intelligence and software engineering

   We assess the methodological rigour of experiments that apply deep learning to software engineering tasks and build evidence-based AI tools. We also explore combining large language models with domain-specific languages for web engineering and teaching.

   Sira Vegas, Francy D. Rodríguez, Pilar Rodríguez

Open science

Datasets & replication packages

We share the materials and data of our studies so that others can verify, replicate and extend them.

1. Causal or Correlational? A Cohort Study on the Effects of Code Smells on Class Change- and Fault-Proneness – Artifact

   Sabato Nocera, Sira Vegas, Giuseppe Scanniello, Massimiliano Di Penta and Natalia Juristo

   Figshare

   DatasetDOI

   BibTeX

   @misc{nocera2026causalb,
     title        = {Causal or Correlational? A Cohort Study on the Effects of Code Smells on Class Change- and Fault-Proneness – Artifact},
     author       = {Sabato Nocera and Sira Vegas and Giuseppe Scanniello and Massimiliano Di Penta and Natalia Juristo},
     year         = {2026},
     doi          = {10.6084/m9.figshare.29561867},
     howpublished = {Figshare},
   }

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2. Dataset of the Article How Acceptance Test Suites Affect Response Variable Measurement in TDD Experiments: An Empirical Study

   Óscar Dieste, Fernando Uyaguari, Sira Vegas, José Ignacio Panach and Natalia Juristo

   Zenodo

   DatasetDOI

   BibTeX

   @misc{dieste2026dataset,
     title        = {Dataset of the Article How Acceptance Test Suites Affect Response Variable Measurement in TDD Experiments: An Empirical Study},
     author       = {Óscar Dieste and Fernando Uyaguari and Sira Vegas and José Ignacio Panach and Natalia Juristo},
     year         = {2026},
     doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.22767870},
     howpublished = {Zenodo},
   }

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3. Investigating Causality in Software Repositories Using Cohort-Based Methods - Replication Package

   Sira Vegas, Sabato Nocera, Giuseppe Scanniello and Natalia Juristo

   Figshare

   DatasetDOI

   BibTeX

   @misc{vegas2026investigatingb,
     title        = {Investigating Causality in Software Repositories Using Cohort-Based Methods - Replication Package},
     author       = {Sira Vegas and Sabato Nocera and Giuseppe Scanniello and Natalia Juristo},
     year         = {2026},
     doi          = {10.6084/m9.figshare.32288337},
     howpublished = {Figshare},
   }

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4. On the Effects of Customized Configurations of Static Code Analysis Tools: A Prospective Cohort Study of SonarQube Cloud - Artifact

   Sabato Nocera, Sira Vegas and Giuseppe Scanniello

   Figshare

   DatasetDOIOpen access

   BibTeX

   @misc{nocera2026effectsb,
     title        = {On the Effects of Customized Configurations of Static Code Analysis Tools: A Prospective Cohort Study of SonarQube Cloud - Artifact},
     author       = {Sabato Nocera and Sira Vegas and Giuseppe Scanniello},
     year         = {2026},
     doi          = {10.6084/m9.figshare.31842262},
     howpublished = {Figshare},
   }

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5. Replication package for EMSE article: "Retrospective Cohort Study In Action: A Pilot Investigation on the SonarQube Issue Impacting the Development Velocity"

   Mikel Robredo, Nyyti Saarimäki, Gregrey Agbonvihele Oko-Oboh, Sira Vegas, Davide Taibi and Valentina Lenarduzzi

   Zenodo

   DatasetDOI

   BibTeX

   @misc{robredo2026replication,
     title        = {Replication package for EMSE article: "Retrospective Cohort Study In Action: A Pilot Investigation on the SonarQube Issue Impacting the Development Velocity"},
     author       = {Mikel Robredo and Nyyti Saarimäki and Gregrey Agbonvihele Oko-Oboh and Sira Vegas and Davide Taibi and Valentina Lenarduzzi},
     year         = {2026},
     doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.19466238},
     howpublished = {Zenodo},
   }

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6. Stop Comparing Apples and Oranges: Matching for Better Results in Mining Software Repositories Studies - Replication Package

   Sabato Nocera, Nyyti Saarimäki, Valentina Lenarduzzi, Davide Taibi and Sira Vegas

   Figshare

   DatasetDOI

   BibTeX

   @misc{nocera2026stopb,
     title        = {Stop Comparing Apples and Oranges: Matching for Better Results in Mining Software Repositories Studies - Replication Package},
     author       = {Sabato Nocera and Nyyti Saarimäki and Valentina Lenarduzzi and Davide Taibi and Sira Vegas},
     year         = {2026},
     doi          = {10.6084/m9.figshare.30391231},
     howpublished = {Figshare},
   }

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7. Data from TDD Experiment Series

   Geovanny Raura, Oscar Dieste and Efraín R. Fonseca C.

   Zenodo

   DatasetDOI

   BibTeX

   @misc{raura2025data,
     title        = {Data from TDD Experiment Series},
     author       = {Geovanny Raura and Oscar Dieste and Efraín R. Fonseca C.},
     year         = {2025},
     doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.15075335},
     howpublished = {Zenodo},
   }

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8. Official Replication Package of the EMSE Journal Article: "Does Microservice Adoption Impact the Velocity? A Cohort Study"

   Nyyti Saarimäki, Mikel Robredo, Valentina Lenarduzzi, Sira Vegas, Natalia Juristo Juzgado and Davide Taibi

   Zenodo

   DatasetDOI

   BibTeX

   @misc{saarimaki2025official,
     title        = {Official Replication Package of the EMSE Journal Article: "Does Microservice Adoption Impact the Velocity? A Cohort Study"},
     author       = {Nyyti Saarimäki and Mikel Robredo and Valentina Lenarduzzi and Sira Vegas and Natalia Juristo Juzgado and Davide Taibi},
     year         = {2025},
     doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.14876471},
     howpublished = {Zenodo},
   }

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9. Replication package for the MSR2024 paper "Cohort In Action: A Pilot Investigation on the SonarQube Issue Impacting the Development Velocity"

   Nyyti Saarimäki, Mikel Robredo, Sira Vegas, Natalia Juristo, Davide Taibi, Valentina Lenarduzzi and Gregrey Agbonvihele Oko-Oboh

   Figshare

   DatasetDOIOpen access

   BibTeX

   @misc{saarimaki2023replication,
     title        = {Replication package for the MSR2024 paper "Cohort In Action: A Pilot Investigation on the SonarQube Issue Impacting the Development Velocity"},
     author       = {Nyyti Saarimäki and Mikel Robredo and Sira Vegas and Natalia Juristo and Davide Taibi and Valentina Lenarduzzi and Gregrey Agbonvihele Oko-Oboh},
     year         = {2023},
     doi          = {10.6084/m9.figshare.24056532},
     howpublished = {Figshare},
   }

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10. Survey on Experimental Software Engineering Process - Answers

    Efraín R. Fonseca C., Óscar Dieste and Natalia Juristo

    Zenodo

    DatasetDOI

    BibTeX

    @misc{c2023survey,
      title        = {Survey on Experimental Software Engineering Process - Answers},
      author       = {Efraín R. Fonseca C. and Óscar Dieste and Natalia Juristo},
      year         = {2023},
      doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.10252430},
      howpublished = {Zenodo},
    }

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11. An External Replication on the Effects of Test-driven Development Using a Multi-site Blind Analysis Approach (Dataset)

    Davide Fucci, Giuseppe Scanniello, Simone Romano, Martin Shepperd, Boyce Sigweni, Fernando Uyaguari, Burak Turhan, Natalia Juristo and Markku Oivo

    Zenodo

    DatasetDOIOpen access

    BibTeX

    @misc{fucci2022external,
      title        = {An External Replication on the Effects of Test-driven Development Using a Multi-site Blind Analysis Approach (Dataset)},
      author       = {Davide Fucci and Giuseppe Scanniello and Simone Romano and Martin Shepperd and Boyce Sigweni and Fernando Uyaguari and Burak Turhan and Natalia Juristo and Markku Oivo},
      year         = {2022},
      doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.7071955},
      howpublished = {Zenodo},
    }

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12. Material of Effect of Requirements Analyst Experience on Elicitation Effectiveness: A Family of Quasi-Experiments

    Alejandrina M. Aranda, Óscar Dieste, Natalia Juristo and José Ignacio Panach

    DatasetDOIOpen access

    BibTeX

    @misc{aranda2022material,
      title     = {Material of Effect of Requirements Analyst Experience on Elicitation Effectiveness: A Family of Quasi-Experiments},
      author    = {Alejandrina M. Aranda and Óscar Dieste and Natalia Juristo and José Ignacio Panach},
      year      = {2022},
      publisher = {Zenodo},
      doi       = {10.5281/zenodo.6139652},
    }

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13. Using the SOCIO Chatbot for UML Modelling: A Second Family of Experiments

    Ranci Ren, John W. Castro, Óscar Dieste and Silvia Teresita Acuña

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    DatasetDOI

    BibTeX

    @misc{ren2022socioc,
      title        = {Using the SOCIO Chatbot for UML Modelling: A Second Family of Experiments},
      author       = {Ranci Ren and John W. Castro and Óscar Dieste and Silvia Teresita Acuña},
      year         = {2022},
      doi          = {10.6084/m9.figshare.20563995},
      howpublished = {Figshare},
    }

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14. An Empirical Study to Evaluate the Impact of Mindfulness at a Software Company (Laboratory Package)

    Beatriz Bernárdez, José Ignacio Panach, José Antonio Parejo, Amador Durán, Natalia Juristo and Antonio Ruiz–Cortés

    Zenodo

    DatasetDOI

    BibTeX

    @misc{bernardez2021empirical,
      title        = {An Empirical Study to Evaluate the Impact of Mindfulness at a Software Company (Laboratory Package)},
      author       = {Beatriz Bernárdez and José Ignacio Panach and José Antonio Parejo and Amador Durán and Natalia Juristo and Antonio Ruiz–Cortés},
      year         = {2021},
      doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.5607551},
      howpublished = {Zenodo},
    }

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15. Using the SOCIO Chatbot for UML Modelling: A Family of Experiments

    Ranci Ren, John W. Castro, Adrián Santos, Óscar Dieste and Silvia Teresita Acuña

    Figshare

    DatasetDOIOpen access

    BibTeX

    @misc{ren2021socio,
      title        = {Using the SOCIO Chatbot for UML Modelling: A Family of Experiments},
      author       = {Ranci Ren and John W. Castro and Adrián Santos and Óscar Dieste and Silvia Teresita Acuña},
      year         = {2021},
      doi          = {10.6084/m9.figshare.17513993},
      howpublished = {Figshare},
    }

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16. Quality measurement in agile and rapid software development: a systematic mapping [Dataset]

    Lidia López, Xavier Burgués Illa, Silverio Martínez‐Fernández, Anna Maria Vollmer, Woubshet Behutiye, Pertti Karhapää, Xavier Franch, Pilar Rodríguez and Markku Oivo

    DatasetDOIOpen access

    BibTeX

    @misc{lopez2020quality,
      title  = {Quality measurement in agile and rapid software development: a systematic mapping [Dataset]},
      author = {Lidia López and Xavier Burgués Illa and Silverio Martínez‐Fernández and Anna Maria Vollmer and Woubshet Behutiye and Pertti Karhapää and Xavier Franch and Pilar Rodríguez and Markku Oivo},
      year   = {2020},
      doi    = {10.5821/data-2117-335910-1},
    }

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17. Need For Sleep - Replication package

    Davide Fucci, Giuseppe Scanniello, Simone Romano and Natalia Juristo

    Figshare

    DatasetDOIOpen access

    BibTeX

    @misc{fucci2017need,
      title        = {Need For Sleep - Replication package},
      author       = {Davide Fucci and Giuseppe Scanniello and Simone Romano and Natalia Juristo},
      year         = {2017},
      doi          = {10.6084/m9.figshare.5483974},
      howpublished = {Figshare},
    }

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