The Silent Scientist: When Software Research Fails to Reach Its Audience

2025/05/14 by Marvin Wyrich, Christof Tinnes, Wyrich, Marvin +5 · 1 voice · 2 citations
Computer Science · Decision Sciences · #FOS: Computer and information sciences #Interdisciplinary Research and Collaboration #Scientific Computing and Data Management #Software Engineering (cs.SE) #cs.SE

paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2505.09541

openalex publication_date 2025/05/14 · arxiv published 2025/05/14 · arxiv updated 2025/05/14 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28

Abstract

If software research were a performance, it would be a thoughtful theater play -- full of rich content but confined to the traditional stage of academic publishing. Meanwhile, its potential audience is immersed in engaging on-demand experiences, leaving the theater half-empty, and the research findings lost in the wings. As long as this remains the case, discussions about research relevance and impact lack meaningful context.

Citations

• It Will Never Work in Theory
• Teaching Computer Science Students to Communicate Scientific Findings More Effectively
• Science Communication: A Contemporary Definition

Cited by

• Motivations and Barriers to Communicating Software Engineering Research: Insights from Early Career Researchers
• Software Engineering Podcasts: An Empirical Study of Their Potential as a Research Resource

Discussions

• "Though critical self-reflection is a staple in research, the software research community seems to take it further, grappling almost yearly with feelings of insignificance and entirely questioning the [bsky, 1 points, 1 comments]

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