A Systematic Mapping Study on Soft Skills in Software Engineering

To participate in software development projects, team members may need to perform different roles and be skilled in diverse methodologies, tools and techniques. However, other skills, usually known as “soft skills” are also necessary. We report the results of a systematic mapping study to identify existing research on soft skills in software engineering and to determine what soft skills are considered relevant to the practice of software engineering. After applying an explicit mapping protocol, 44 papers were finally selected, and 30 main categories of soft skills were identified. At least half of the studies selected mention five skills: communication, teamwork, analytical, organizational, and interpersonal skills. We also identified the data collection methods commonly used for research on this topic: job advertisements and surveys were the main ones. The results of this work are of interest to researchers in human aspects of software engineering, to those responsible for Human Resource in software development companies, and to curriculum designers in careers related to software engineering and development.