Software component selection methods and techniques: a systematic review

Abstract

Software component selection is critical in software engineering due to its vital role in reducing software development cost and time. This study analyzes software component selection research studies on methodologies, criteria, and multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques. The key study findings are: first, comprehensive standardized criteria for software component selection are lacking, with ambiguous terminology used in research. Second, current ad hoc selection processes need streamlining to reduce time, cost, and effort. Thus, an integrated approach is required to aid decision-makers. The review suggests developing automated tools or decision support systems combining multiple criteria decision methods to improve selection accuracy and efficiency. Standardized criteria catalogs can also assist software developers in the evaluation. The findings highlight that despite extensive academic research, component selection in practice remains sub-optimal. By informing future research and tool development, this review can benefit practitioners to systematically select the most appropriate software components meeting software requirements.