Designing requirements engineering research

Engineering sciences study different different topics than natural sciences, and utility is an essential factor in choosing engineering research problems. But despite these differences, research methods for the engineering sciences are no different than research methods for any other kind of science. At most there is a difference in emphasis. In the case of requirements engineering research - and more generally software engineering research - there is a confusion about the relative roles of research and about design and the methods appropriate for each of these activities. This paper analyzes these roles and provides a classification of research methods that can be used in any science—engineering or otherwise

Consumer perception and communication on welfare in organic laying hen farming

A major reason for increased societal popularity of organic production systems is the growing general discontent with intensive farming practices. However, urbanization leads to limited knowledge of farming and farm animal welfare. Consumers believe organic farming leads to better animal welfare, although most health and welfare issues seen in conventional systems are also found in organic poultry systems. The majority of consumers do not translate attitude and good intention into action, the actual purchase of organic products. Understanding this intention-behaviour gap may lead to increased sales of organic products. Effective communication and education can create trust, added additional values and credibility, and may lead to structured perceptions, convictions, values, norms, knowledge and interests and lead to better understanding of organic farming and farm animal welfare. Merchandising strategies can reduce barriers the consumer may encounter at the moment of decision making

Evaluating the structure of research papers: A case study

This paper is triggered by a concern for the methodological soundness of research papers in RE. We propose a number of criteria for methodological soundness, and apply these to a random sample of 37 submissions to the RE'03\ud conference. From this application, we draw a number of conclusions that we claim are valid for a larger sample than just these 37 submissions. Our major observation is that most submissions in our sample are solution-oriented: \ud they present a solution and illustrate it with a problem, rather than search for a solution to a given problem class; and most papers do not analyze why and when a solution works or does not work. We end with discussion of the need to improve the methodological soundness of research papers in RE

Design science, engineering science and requirements engineering

For several decades there has been a debate in the computing sciences about the relative roles of design and empirical research, and about the contribution of design and research methodology to the relevance of research results. In this minitutorial we review this debate and compare it with evidence about the relation between design and research in the history of science and technology. Our review shows that research and design are separate but concurrent activities, and that relevance of research results depends on problem setting rather than on rigorous methods. We argue that rigorous scientific methods separate design from research, and we give simple model for how to do this in a problem-driven way

Modeling importance assessment processes in non-routine decision problems

Het afwegingsproces moet worden onderscheiden van de uiteindelijke afweging (het belangrijkheidsoordeel ofwel de aan attributen toegekende gewichten). Het afwegingsproces betreft de denkprocessen die leiden tot de gewichten. Zulke processen zijn uiterst relevant voor de bedrijfskunde en voor inzicht in de dagelijkse praktijk van\ud management. Een manager moet bij beslissingen verschillende soorten informatie (technische, financiële) integreren tot een keuze uit alternatieven. Ondanks de multidisciplinaire pretenties van de bedrijfskunde is niet bekend hoe dit gebeurt. De input en output van multidisciplinaire beslissingsprocessen zijn uitgebreid bestudeerd, wat zich afspeelt in het hoofd van de manager bij het integreren van informatie is voor bedrijfskundigen, maar ook voor psychologen, nog grotendeels onbekend. Er is veel bekend over het genereren van alternatieven, het scoren ervan, en over instrumenten om gewichten te achterhalen, maar niet over denkprocessen met betrekking tot het vaststellen van gewichte

Justice by any Means: The Relationship Between Societal Stress and the Rise of Vigilantism in Comic Books

The following study used sales data to ascertain the presence of a link between current socio-political tensions (as measured by the Bulletin of Atomic Sciences’ Doomsday Clock and national crime statistics) and the prevalence and acceptance of so-called “vigilante justice” portrayed in the top-selling comic books during the period between 1989 and 2001. The purpose of this study is to understand what, if any, relationship exists between dark times and desperate measures; between a feeling of powerlessness in world affairs, and the belief that justice outside of the system is acceptable when that system, at home or abroad, fails to keep people safe