Software Sustainability Perceptions in the Industry: A Questionnaire Study

Jennifer Gross, Temesgen Hagos Mengesha, Sofia Ouhbi

2025

Abstract

Despite growing awareness, many industry efforts regarding software sustainability often appear superficial and fail to address its complex, multifaceted nature. This paper examines software sustainability practices in the industry through the perspectives of IT practitioners. A questionnaire study involving 23 professionals based in Sweden revealed a significant gap in understanding, with 35% of participants unfamiliar with the term “software sustainability.” Most definitions provided by participants focused on technical aspects, overlooking economic and social dimensions. The findings indicate that key barriers perceived by participants to integrating sustainability include a lack of awareness, time and budget constraints, and skepticism toward sustainability metrics. A majority of respondents recognized the link between sustainability and software quality. To promote sustainable software practices, respondents recommended embedding sustainability into industry practices and educational curricula, as well as developing clear metrics to measure its impact.

Paper Citation

in Bibtex Style

@conference{enase25,
author={Jennifer Gross and Temesgen Mengesha and Sofia Ouhbi},
title={Software Sustainability Perceptions in the Industry: A Questionnaire Study},
booktitle={Proceedings of the 20th International Conference on Evaluation of Novel Approaches to Software Engineering - Volume 1: ENASE},
year={2025},
pages={197-207},
publisher={SciTePress},
organization={INSTICC},
doi={10.5220/0013405300003928},
isbn={978-989-758-742-9},
}

in EndNote Style

TY - CONF

JO - Proceedings of the 20th International Conference on Evaluation of Novel Approaches to Software Engineering - Volume 1: ENASE
TI - Software Sustainability Perceptions in the Industry: A Questionnaire Study
SN - 978-989-758-742-9
AU - Gross J.
AU - Mengesha T.
AU - Ouhbi S.
PY - 2025
SP - 197
EP - 207
DO - 10.5220/0013405300003928
PB - SciTePress

in Harvard Style

Gross J., Mengesha T. and Ouhbi S. (2025). Software Sustainability Perceptions in the Industry: A Questionnaire Study. In Proceedings of the 20th International Conference on Evaluation of Novel Approaches to Software Engineering - Volume 1: ENASE; ISBN 978-989-758-742-9, SciTePress, pages 197-207. DOI: 10.5220/0013405300003928