Organizing the TD Management Landscape for Requirements and Requirements Documentation Debt

Abstract

[Context:] Requirements and requirements documentation debt (R2DD) indicate shortcuts taken in software development projects, resulting in requirements partially implemented and with outdated documentation, respectively. Knowing the causes and effects of R2DD can support software teams in defining actions to prevent the occurrence of these items and aid in the prioritization for eliminating them, respectively. Besides, having information on how practitioners deal with R2DD items can support developing new strategies and artifacts for managing these items. However, little is known on the state of the practice of R2DD. [Aims:] To investigate the state of the practice of R2DD, revealing its causes, effects, and practices and practice avoidance reasons (PARs) considered for its prevention and repayment. [Method:] We analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively a corpus of responses from a survey with software practitioners on R2DD and its elements (causes, effects, prevention, and repayment). [Results:] We identified 55 causes, 33 effects, 26 prevention practices, three PARs related to nonprevention, 18 repayment practices, and 16 PARs associated with nonrepayment of R2DD items. [Conclusion:] We organized those practices into a conceptual map. Software practitioners can use the map to start or improve their initiatives for dealing with R2DD items.