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An Exploratory Study of Software Sustainability at Early Stages of Software Development

Author

Listed:
  • Hira Noman

    (Department of Software Engineering, Mehran University of Engineering & Technology, Jamshoro 76062, Pakistan)

  • Naeem Ahmed Mahoto

    (Department of Software Engineering, Mehran University of Engineering & Technology, Jamshoro 76062, Pakistan)

  • Sania Bhatti

    (Department of Software Engineering, Mehran University of Engineering & Technology, Jamshoro 76062, Pakistan)

  • Hamad Ali Abosaq

    (College of Computer Science and Information Systems, Najran University, Najran 61441, Saudi Arabia)

  • Mana Saleh Al Reshan

    (College of Computer Science and Information Systems, Najran University, Najran 61441, Saudi Arabia)

  • Asadullah Shaikh

    (College of Computer Science and Information Systems, Najran University, Najran 61441, Saudi Arabia)

Abstract

Sustainability incorporation within the field of Software Engineering is an emerging research area. Sustainability, from an academic perspective, has been addressed to a large extent. However, when it comes to the software industry, the topic has not received much-needed attention. Software, being designed and developed in the industry, can benefit society at large, if sustainability is taken into account by the software professionals during the software design and development process. To develop a sustainable software application, knowledge and awareness about sustainability by professional software developers is one of the key elements. This study is an attempt to examine sustainability knowledge, importance, and support from the perspective of South Asian software professionals. Additionally, this study also proposes sustainability guidelines for certain software applications and also a catalog for the identification of sustainability requirements for different software applications. The queries such as ‘What does sustainability mean to a professional software developer?’, ‘How does the software industry identify sustainability requirements?’, ‘How do software developers incorporate the sustainability parameters within software during software development?’, and many other such queries are addressed in this study. To achieve this goal, a survey was carried out among 221 industry practitioners involved in software projects in various application domains such as banking, finance, and management applications. The results pinpoint that even though sustainability is deemed important by 91% of practitioners, still there is a lack of understanding regarding sustainability incorporation in software development. A total of 48% of professionals often misunderstand “Green software” as “sustainable software”. The technical aspect of sustainability is considered most important by professionals (67%) as well as companies (77%). One of the key findings of this study is that 92% of software practitioners are not able to identify sustainability requirements for software applications. The outcomes of the study may be regarded as an initial attempt towards how sustainability is comprehended in software by the South Asian software industry.

Suggested Citation

  • Hira Noman & Naeem Ahmed Mahoto & Sania Bhatti & Hamad Ali Abosaq & Mana Saleh Al Reshan & Asadullah Shaikh, 2022. "An Exploratory Study of Software Sustainability at Early Stages of Software Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-23, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:14:p:8596-:d:862371
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Muhammad Noman Malik & Huma Hayat Khan & Abdoulmohammad Gholamzadeh Chofreh & Feybi Ariani Goni & Jiří Jaromír Klemeš & Youseef Alotaibi, 2019. "Investigating Students’ Sustainability Awareness and the Curriculum of Technology Education in Pakistan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-18, May.
    2. Shola Oyedeji & Ahmed Seffah & Birgit Penzenstadler, 2018. "A Catalogue Supporting Software Sustainability Design," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-30, July.
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