# Towards a Theory of Software Development Expertise

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/1807.06087 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/1807.06087/

## Key facts

- Cited by 5 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 16 Jul 2018.

## Built on by (most cited first, 5 of 5)

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- [Prompts Are Programs Too! Understanding How Developers Build Software Containing Prompts](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.12447/) (2024)
- [Can GPT-4 Replicate Empirical Software Engineering Research?](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.01727/) (2023)
- [TableTalk: Scaffolding Spreadsheet Development with a Language Agent](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.09787/) (2025)
- [Novice Developers' Perspectives on Adopting LLMs for Software Development: A Systematic Literature Review](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.07556/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Software development includes diverse tasks such as implementing new features, analyzing requirements, and fixing bugs. Being an expert in those tasks requires a certain set of skills, knowledge, and experience. Several studies investigated individual aspects of software development expertise, but what is missing is a comprehensive theory. We present a first conceptual theory of software development expertise that is grounded in data from a mixed-methods survey with 335 software developers and in literature on expertise and expert performance. Our theory currently focuses on programming, but already provides valuable insights for researchers, developers, and employers. The theory describes important properties of software development expertise and which factors foster or hinder its formation, including how developers' performance may decline over time. Moreover, our quantitative results show that developers' expertise self-assessments are context-dependent and that experience is not necessarily related to expertise.