{"ID":2829320,"CreatedAt":"2026-06-01T04:54:23.091178241Z","UpdatedAt":"2026-06-01T04:54:23.091178241Z","DeletedAt":null,"paper_url":"https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.12699","arxiv_id":"2512.12699","title":"Attributes to Support the Formulation of Practically Relevant Research Problems in Software Engineering","abstract":"[Background] A well-formulated research problem is essential for achieving practical relevance in Software Engineering (SE), yet there is a lack of structured guidance in this early phase. [Aims] Our goal is to introduce and evaluate seven attributes identified in the SE literature as relevant for formulating research problems (practical problem, context, implications/impacts, practitioners, evidence, objective, and research questions) in terms of their perceived importance and completeness, and learn how they can be applied. [Method] We conducted a workshop with 42 senior SE researchers during the ISERN 2024 meeting. The seven attributes were presented using a Problem Vision board filled with a research example. Participants discussed attributes in groups, shared written feedback, and individually completed a survey assessing their importance, completeness, and suggestions for improvement. [Results] The findings confirm the importance of the seven attributes in the formulation of industry-oriented research problems. Qualitative feedback illustrated how they can be applied in practice and revealed suggestions to refine them, such as incorporating financial criteria (e.g., ROI) into implications/impacts and addressing feasibility and constraints under evidence. [Conclusion] The results reaffirm the importance of the seven attributes in supporting a reflective and context-aware problem formulation. Adapting their use to specific research contexts can help to improve the alignment between academic research and industry needs.","short_abstract":"[Background] A well-formulated research problem is essential for achieving practical relevance in Software Engineering (SE), yet there is a lack of structured guidance in this early phase. [Aims] Our goal is to introduce and evaluate seven attributes identified in the SE literature as relevant for formulating research...","url_abs":"https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.12699","url_pdf":"https://arxiv.org/pdf/2512.12699v1","authors":"[\"Anrafel Fernandes Pereira\",\"Maria Teresa Baldassarre\",\"Daniel Mendez\",\"Jürgen Börstler\",\"Nauman bin Ali\",\"Rahul Mohanani\",\"Darja Smite\",\"Stefan Biffl\",\"Rogardt Heldal\",\"Davide Falessi\",\"Daniel Graziotin\",\"Marcos Kalinowski\"]","published":"2025-12-14T14:06:25Z","proceeding":"cs.SE","tasks":"[\"cs.SE\"]","methods":"[]","has_code":false}