Synthesizing the evidence from a set of studies that spans many countries and years, and that incorporates a wide variety of research methods and theoretical perspectives, is probably the single most challenging task of performing a systematic review. In this paper, we perform a tertiary review to assess the types and methods of research synthesis in systematic reviews in software engineering. Almost half of the 31 studies included in our review did not contain any synthesis; of the ones that did, two thirds performed a narrative or a thematic synthesis. The results show that, despite the focus on systematic reviews, there is, currently, limited attention to research synthesis in software engineering. This needs to change and a repertoire of synthesis methods needs to be an integral part of systematic reviews to increase their significance and utility for research and practice.

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Abstract — Folklore and beliefs are strong in the software practitioners’ community. Software engineering is a communication intensive activity. Software engineers are innovation driven and regularly use automated resources to share ideas, new paradigms and approaches to support and improve their practices. This information flow generates technical folklore and beliefs (that do not have a formal trial basis). Software engineers applying practices are influenced by these and they are inevitably taken on board in the adoption of a particular technology or practice. This paper presents an industrial case study, using a qualitative approach, to investigate the origins and impacts of beliefs on software development team practices. Its main contribution is on the understanding of creation and evolution of technical beliefs, and in studying its use for team practices improvement in the software engineering industry. Keywords-belief; technical folklore and beliefs; industry case study; business culture and values; software practices. I.

Abstract — Research findings can influence decisions at many levels, but only if one knows how to translate them into actionable and practical information. One of the major concerns of empirical software engineering research is in making a real impact on software engineering practice, bridging the gap between academia and industry. The area calls for effective approaches to the dissemination of empirical evidence into practice and there are no simple answers for this problem. In this context, the main objective of this proposal is to develop a methodology to increase the influence of empirical results on software practices and project team behavior. The main contribution is to deepen relevant knowledge and experience on how to expand the use of empirical results in the software development process, including the selection and use of technologies and practices in software industry context. Keywords – belief; technical folklore; organizational culture; team practices; evidence-based and empirical software engineering. I.