Unveiling Research Trends in Stack Overflow: A Comprehensive Analysis of General Discussion Theme

Stack Overflow (SO), as technical Question & Answer (Q&A) platform, plays a pivotal role in facilitating knowledge exchange between software developers. Since the release of SO, numerous studies have been conducted to gain insights into the discussions of its users. Despite its significance, a comprehensive review in terms of the evolving trends, impact, sources, and themes within this domain is lacking. This paper presents a systematic literature review of SO-related studies from 2019 to 2023, exploring the evolution, impact assessment, relevant sources, and thematic explorations within this domain. Our study analyzes 804 SO-related journal and conference articles, employing Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) technique to collect data from Scopus. The findings show that the evolution of SO-related studies reveals a sustained academic interest, with 172 publications in 2020 and a continued engagement with 153 publications in 2023. The declining trend in citations over recent years suggests the need for further exploration into factors influencing the impact of SO studies on the broader field of software development. The identification of relevant sources highlights different contributions from journals and conferences, such as Empirical Software Engineering and the ACM International Conference Proceeding Series. Thematic exploration reveals dynamic changes, with a dominant focus on Codes (Symbols) in 2019 and subsequent diversification into themes like Deep Learning and Software Design. This literature review provides valuable insights for academics, practitioners, and developers, emphasizing the importance of SO as a platform for collaborative knowledge sharing within the software development community.