Why Do We Code? A Theory on Motivations and Challenges in Software Engineering from Education to Practice

2025-11-18

AI Summary

A theoretical gap exists regarding the dynamic interplay between motivation and challenges faced by software engineering (SE) learners during the transition from education to professional practice. Method: Addressing this gap, we conducted semi-structured interviews with SE learners and practitioners and applied the Gioia methodology grounded in constructivist grounded theory to develop the first integrated motivation–challenge model spanning both educational and occupational phases. Contribution/Results: We propose the Exposure–Pursuit–Evaluation (EPE) process model, identifying two distinct educational motivators—“curiosity-driven engagement” and “avoidance of alternative pathways”—and uncovering “belongingness barriers” as the sole persistent, cross-phase challenge. The study elucidates contextual triggers and impediments to intrinsic motivation, yielding actionable insights for intervention design aimed at improving SE talent retention.

Technology Category

• Application Domains: Software Engineering
• Cognitive Modeling & Cognitive Systems: Adaptive Behavior
• Knowledge Representation and Reasoning: Knowledge Engineering

Application Category

• User Modeling, Personalization and Recommendation: Practical large-scale studies of user experience
• Graph Algorithms and Modeling for the Web: Representation, reconstruction, and subgraph or motif discovery in Web-related graphs
• Economics, Online Markets and Human Computation: Incentives in network design for Web infrastructures and ecosystems

Abstract

Motivations and challenges jointly shape how individuals enter, persist, and evolve within software engineering (SE), yet their interplay remains underexplored across the transition from education to professional practice. We conducted 15 semi-structured interviews and employed the Gioia Methodology, an adapted grounded theory methodology from organizational behavior, to inductively derive taxonomies of motivations and challenges, and build the Exposure-Pursuit-Evaluation (EPE) Process Model. Our findings reveal that impactful early exposure triggers intrinsic motivations, while non-impactful exposure requires an extrinsic push (e.g., career/ personal goals, external validation). We identify curiosity and avoiding alternatives as a distinct educational drivers, and barriers to belonging as the only challenge persisting across education and career. Our findings show that career progression challenges (e.g., navigating the corporate world) constrain extrinsic fulfillment while technical training challenges, barriers to belonging and threats to motivation constrain intrinsic fulfillment. The theory shows how unmet motivations and recurring challenges influence persistence, career shifts, or departure from the field. Our results provide a grounded model for designing interventions that strengthen intrinsic fulfillment and reduce systemic barriers in SE education and practice.

Problem

• Investigating motivations and challenges in software engineering education to practice transition
• Developing a model explaining how unmet motivations influence career persistence
• Identifying systemic barriers affecting intrinsic fulfillment in software engineering

Innovation

• Applied Gioia Methodology for inductive analysis
• Developed Exposure-Pursuit-Evaluation Process Model
• Identified intrinsic-extrinsic motivation triggers and barriers