A Mosaic of Perspectives: Understanding Ownership in Software Engineering

Abstract

Agile software development relies on self-organized teams, underlining the importance of individual responsibility. How developers take responsibility and build ownership are influenced by external factors such as architecture and development methods. This paper examines the existing literature on ownership in software engineering and in psychology, and argues that a more comprehensive view of ownership in software engineering has a great potential in improving software team's work. Initial positions on the issue are offered for discussion and to lay foundations for further research.

arXiv commentThis preprint has not undergone peer review (when applicable) or any post-submission improvements or corrections. The Version of Record of this contribution is published in Agile Processes in Software Engineering and Extreme Programming, Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing (LNBIP, volume 545), and is available online at https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-94544-1_5