Towards the Understanding and Classiﬁcation of the Personality Traits of Software Development Practitioners - Situational Context Cards Approach

Sep 17, 2026

Uploaded by Jasmine

This study explores personality traits of software development practitioners using a classification schema derived from Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) extensions. A card-game method is proposed, featuring seventy scenario cards with two selectable options for each situation. A game master elicits choices and infers compatible personality traits on an MBTI-aligned scale. The approach is evaluated through case studies with sixteen participants in university sessions and sixty practitioners in industry team pairings, refining questions after initial testing. Results indicate tendencies toward extroversion beyond classroom settings and suggest practical viability for workforce management.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages6

Reading Time15 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

I. Introduction

II. Personality Assessment

Towards the Understanding and Classiﬁcation of the Personality Traits of Software Development Practitioners: Situational Context Cards Approach Murat Yilmaz Lero Graduate School in Software Engineering Dublin City University Ireland [Email: Murat.Yilmaz@computing.dcu.ie](Email: Murat.Yilmaz@computing.dcu.ie) Rory V. O'Connor Dublin City University Ireland Lero, the Irish Software Engineering Research Centre Email: [roconnor@computing.dcu.ie](roconnor@computing.dcu.ie) Abstract—This study explores the personality traits of software development practitioners by using a classiﬁcation schema based on the personality traits extended on the Myers-Briggs type indicator (MBTI). To extract the information necessary for understanding and classiﬁcation of software development personnel, we developed a card game playable with either single or multiple participants. The game consists of seventy cards, which have a keyword and a picture on one side and a hypothetical situation typically encountered in software development landscapes with two different selectable options on the other side. The game master (GM) reads a situation by showing the pictures to participants and elicits the most suitable answer in between two selections. Ultimately, the outcome of the game reveals the personality traits of individuals on a compatible scale with the MBTI. To evaluate our game-based personality identiﬁcation method, we conduct a case study with sixteen individuals at a university environment in seven group sessions. In light of the experience gained, secondly we reﬁne the questions and test the game on sixty software development personnel selected from a set of team based pairings at a middle size software company. Our preliminary results indicate that there are more individuals in software teams, who may perceive to be extroverted not only in a classroom environment but also in an industrial setting. Moreover, the initial results suggest that our method can be a viable to the classical paper based MBTI tests particularly for managing the workforce in software development projects. I. INTRODUCTION Software projects face several challenges in their dynamically changing organizational environments. One approach, suggested by several researchers considers software development as a social activity [1], which relies on the fact that software teams consist of distinctive personality types, and interact to perform a series of tasks or assignmentsin a software development project. In fact, one of the key components for success in a software development organization arises from selecting the right employee or a team for the right tasks. From a technical viewpoint, skills of the individuals should match with the required talents and experience. However, to improve software productivity, the social aspects such as individuals' compatibility in a team has emerged as a research interest with a focus on personality traits over software team conﬁguration [2], which directly affects the quality of knowledge exchange among the team members. It is therefore not surprising that several researchers in the ﬁeld of software engineering focus on the effects of personality types on the software development process and organizational performance [3], [4], [5] . Here, we construct our argument based on the fact that thereis a signiﬁcant correlation between individuals' behaviors and their personality traits in software development landscapes, where these personalities should almost stay consistent with respect to several situations [6] . Consequently, we suggest that behavioral variations among individuals should follow a pattern that we can use to distinguish personality types of the individuals and form team proﬁles in the form of a periodic table of personality types. This study has two main contributions. First, it proposes and tests a new type of personality trait identiﬁcation technique, which is based on a personality trait identiﬁcation game playabl

FAQs

How does the Situational Context Cards approach work to identify personality traits?

Participants respond to hypothetical software-development situations shown through cards, choosing between two options. The game master uses these choices to infer personality traits compatible with an MBTI-aligned scale.

What evaluation method is used to test the proposed game-based identification approach?

The study conducts a university case study with sixteen individuals across seven group sessions, then refines questions and tests the game with sixty software development personnel selected from team-based pairings at a middle-sized software company.

What preliminary findings are reported about software teams and the MBTI-based method?

Preliminary results suggest more team members may perceive as extroverted not only in a classroom environment but also in an industrial setting. The method is also presented as potentially viable compared with classical paper-based MBTI tests for managing workforce in software development projects.

Sep 17, 2026

Uploaded by Jasmine