Authors:
Ana Carolina Moises de Souza
;
Kaban Koochakpour
;
Sofia Papavlasopoulou
and
Letizia Jaccheri
Affiliation:
Department of Computer Science, Norwegian University of Technology and Science, Trondheim, Norway
Keyword(s):
Software Sustainability, Sustainable Development Goals, Software Development, Sustainable Software Engineering, Software Social Impacts.
Abstract:
Socially sustainable software, developed with an emphasis on individual well-being, social justice, and social development, can positively impact society. In order to develop real-world software projects, a software engineering course was established to connect students and companies. This course allows students to address sustainability issues by creating solutions for problems proposed by companies, who are treated as customers. This study explores the alignment of students and customers about social sustainability. An analysis of twelve project proposals and twelve final reports from 67 students revealed that seven customers explicitly mentioned social sustainability. Surprisingly, only three student groups incorporated it into their projects. Two groups addressed the concerns raised by customers, and one proactively tackled social sustainability despite no explicit demand. This study presents a novel approach that integrates social sustainability into software engineering, evalua
ting alignment between customer demands and student responses. Discussions cover potential challenges and improvements in the software development process, proposing initial steps toward a foundational guideline for active engagement in social sustainability by both students and companies.
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