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International Working Conference on Requirements Engineering: Foundation for Software Quality

REFSQ 2013: Requirements Engineering: Foundation for Software Quality pp 174–189Cite as

The Emergence of Mutual and Shared Understanding in the System Development Process

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Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNPSE,volume 7830))

Abstract

[Context and motivation] In interdisciplinary requirements engineering, stakeholders need to understand how other disciplines think and work (mutual understanding) and agree on the system they develop (shared understanding) in order to collaborate effectively. [Question/problem] In this paper we analyse extent and forms of (lacking) mutual understanding according to the periods in the process of conceptual change. [Principal ideas/results] We analyse the communication of a multidisciplinary team while developing a mobile application. Although the team tried to resolve differences in meaning early on by applying approaches for clarification, questions for consolidation, exploration and elaboration occurred at different points in time throughout the process. Even when artefacts were already agreed upon, the development team explored lack of mutual understanding to underlying concepts or relationships. A revised shared understanding led to adjustments of the artefacts and thus hampered the process. [Contribution] We therefore call for research that explores ways of systematically building mutual and shared understanding in the development process.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Information Systems, Kassel University, Pfannkuchstr. 1, 34121, Kassel, Germany

    Axel Hoffmann, Eva Alice Christiane Bittner & Jan Marco Leimeister

  2. Insitute of Information Management, University of St. Gallen, Mueller-Friedberg-Strasse 8, CH-9000, St. Gallen, Switzerland

    Jan Marco Leimeister

Authors
  1. Axel Hoffmann
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  2. Eva Alice Christiane Bittner
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  3. Jan Marco Leimeister
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Fraunhofer-Institut Experimentelles Software Engineering, Fraunhofer-Platz 1, 67663, Kaiserslautern, Germany

    Joerg Doerr

  2. Department of Information Science and Media Studies, University of Bergen, NO-5020, Bergen, Norway

    Andreas L. Opdahl

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Hoffmann, A., Bittner, E.A.C., Leimeister, J.M. (2013). The Emergence of Mutual and Shared Understanding in the System Development Process. In: Doerr, J., Opdahl, A.L. (eds) Requirements Engineering: Foundation for Software Quality. REFSQ 2013. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 7830. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-37422-7_13

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-37422-7_13

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-37421-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-37422-7

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

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