Portrait of Victoria Jackson

Software Engineering Researcher

I am a final-year Informatics PhD student, and my research interests focus on the human aspects of software engineering. I am particularly fascinated by the way teams work, including their work practices and the tools they use. Increasingly, my research explores the use of AI for software engineering from a human-centric perspective.

About

Position
PhD Candidate
Department
Informatics, Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences
Education
MSc University of Manchester
BA (Hons.) Oxford University
Research Focus
Human Aspects of Software Engineering including Creativity, GenAI, Accessibility

I am a PhD Candidate in Informatics at the University of California, Irvine. I am currently finalizing my dissertation on creativity in the everyday work of software teams.


My work focuses on the human aspects of software engineering, focusing on creativity, collaboration, and accessibility. Increasingly, my research examines the impact of AI on software engineering from a human-centric perspective.


Before joining UCI, I worked in the technology industry for over 20 years, primarily in financial services. I held various roles, including engineer, product manager, and engineering lead. My final position before returning to academia involved managing a centralized developer tooling team responsible for providing a contemporary toolset to developers. This diverse industry experience informs my research interests. Particularly, I strive to ensure my work remains relevant to industry with actionable implications.


I am a member of the IEEE and the ACM.

Research

Research Areas

  • Human-Centered AI for SE - Taking a human-centric approach to explore the benefits, and harms, of using AI
  • Creativity in SE - Investigating creativity in the everyday work of software development and how it can be amplified through working practices and novel tools
  • Accessibility in SE - How to make the software development profession more accessible with a specific focus on blind and low vision software professionals.

Publications

Selected Publications

  • The dilemma of building do-it-yourself (DIY) solutions for workplace accessibility
    Y Cha, V Jackson, K Kohl, R Prikladnicki, A van der Hoek, S Branham
    CHI 2025
    A qualitative interview study exploring the intersection of how DIY tools built and used by Blind and Low Vision Software Professionals support accessible software development. 
      Honorable mention
  • Exploring GenAI in Software Development: Insights from a Case Study in a Large Brazilian Company
    G Vaz Pereira, V Jackson, R Prikladnicki, A van der Hoek, L Fortes, C Araújo, A Coelho, L Chelli, D Ramos
    ICSE 2025
    A case study on the software development unit within a large company adopting Generative AI to support software development. 
  • The Impact of Generative AI on Creativity in Software Development: A Research Agenda
    V Jackson, B Vasilescu, D Russo, P Ralph, M Izadi, R Prikladnicki, S D’angelo, S Inman, A Andrade, A van der Hoek
    ACM Transactions on Software Engineering and Methodology
    The potential impacts GenAI may have on creativity within software development are discussed along with a future research agenda comprising five connected themes that consider how individual capabilities, team capabilities, the product, unintended consequences, and society can be affected. 
  • Introduction to the Special Issue on Creativity in Software Engineering
    V Jackson, A van der Hoek, R Prikladnicki, K Singh
    IEEE Software May 2025
    Creativity is an integral part of software development. This paper introduces the special issue by first providing a brief overview of creativity in the context of software development before introducing the nine articles comprising the special issue. 
  • Co-Creation in Fully Remote Software Teams
    V Jackson, R Prikladnicki, A van der Hoek
    ICSE 2024
    This qualitative study uses the lens of co-creation---a concept originally coined and applied in the fields of management and design that denotes how groups of people collaboratively create something of meaning through an orchestration of people, activities, and tools---to study how fully remote software teams co-create digital artifacts that can be considered as a form of documentation. 
  • Understanding the Career Mobility of Blind and Low Vision Software Professionals
    Y Cha, V Jackson, I Figueira, R Prikladnicki, A van der Hoek, S Branham
    CHASE 2024
    Highlights the factors that are impacting the career mobility of Blind and Low Vision Software Professionals. 
      Distinguished paper

Service

Conferences

  • ICSE 2026 NIER Track Program Committee Member.
  • ICSE 2026 Organizing Committee Member & Co-chair of the Student Mentoring Workshop.
  • Agile XP 2025 Program Committee Member.  Best Reviewer Award
  • ICSE 2025 Artifact Evaluation Track Program Committee Member.
  • CHASE 2025 Program Committee Member.
  • CHASE 2024 Program Committee Member.  Distinguished Reviewer Award
  • MSR 2024 Program Committee Member.
  • MSR 2023 Junior Program Committee Member.  Distinguished Reviewer Award

Journals

  • IEEE Software May 2025 Co-Guest Editor Special Issue on Creativity in Software Engineering