International Journal of

ADVANCED AND APPLIED SCIENCES

EISSN: 2313-3724, Print ISSN: 2313-626X

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 Volume 13, Issue 2 (February 2026), Pages: 89-99

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 Original Research Paper

A multidimensional framework for understanding career disinterest in software testing: A cultural, economic, and curriculum-based review

 Author(s): 

 Chrisza Joy M. Carrido 1, Abeer Alsadoon 1, 2, Thair Al-Dala’in 1, 2, Ahmed Hamza Osman 3, *, Abubakar Elsafi 4, Azhari Qismallah 5, Albaraa Abuobieda 6

 Affiliation(s):

 1Higher Education Leadership Institute (HELI), Melbourne, Australia
 2Asia Pacific International College (APIC), Sydney, Australia
 3Department of Information Systems, Faculty of Computing and Information Technology in Rabigh, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
 4Department of Software Engineering, College of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Jeddah, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
 5Department of Computer Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia
 6Department of Software Engineering, College of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Hafr Al Batin, Hafar Al-Batin, Saudi Arabia

 Full text

    Full Text - PDF

 * Corresponding Author. 

   Corresponding author's ORCID profile:  https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8512-578X

 Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

  https://doi.org/10.21833/ijaas.2026.02.010

 Abstract

The aim of this research is to examine the global lack of interest in software testing careers among IT students and to propose culturally grounded reforms for the Philippine context. Although demand for software testing professionals continues to grow, students in many countries perceive testing as repetitive, low in prestige, and limited in career progression. This narrative review uses thematic synthesis to analyze peer-reviewed studies published between 2013 and 2024 from Pakistan, Brazil, India, China, Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The findings identify three key factors influencing career reluctance: cultural influences, economic considerations, and curriculum-related gaps. In the Philippines, cultural values such as utang na loob (debt of gratitude) and pakikisama (group harmony) play an important role in shaping career choices, often discouraging interest in software testing roles. Based on these findings, the study proposes the Cultural–Economic–Curriculum Influences on Reluctance Testing Careers (CEC-IRTC) framework to support curriculum reform, industry–academe collaboration, and culturally sensitive career guidance. Further empirical research is recommended to inform policy and educational practice.

 © 2026 The Authors. Published by IASE.

 This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

 Keywords

 Software testing careers, Student career perceptions, Cultural influences, Curriculum gaps, Philippine higher education

 Article history

 Received 29 September 2025, Received in revised form 1 February 2026, Accepted 4 February 2026

 Acknowledgment

No Acknowledgment. 

 Compliance with ethical standards

 Conflict of interest: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

 Citation:

 Carrido CJM, Alsadoon A, Al-Dala’in T, Osman AH, Elsafi A, Qismallah A, and Abuobieda A (2026). A multidimensional framework for understanding career disinterest in software testing: A cultural, economic, and curriculum-based review. International Journal of Advanced and Applied Sciences, 13(2): 89-99

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 Figures

  Fig. 1 

 Tables

  Table 1  Table 2 

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