Devographics
State of Devs 2026 Suggestions
Hello ☀ I believe the State of Devs survey is an incredibly valuable initiative for understanding our community. I've reviewed the question for 2025 and have some suggestions:
Into secction "Career"
Which of the following best describes how you started your career in software development? Options may be (Single Choice) :
- Coding Bootcamp
- University Degree (e.g., Computer Science, Software Engineering)
- Hackathons
- Networking
- Self-taught (online courses, tutorials, personal projects, etc.)
- Internship/Trainee program
- Apprenticeship
- On-the-job training (without a formal internship/trainee program)
📍 Why should you add this suggestions? : In this case, I think it's very interesting how many developer started their career, what the common ways are, and what the rarer paths are. Maybe this data can inform aspiring developers about the most effective routes into the industry
Have you ever considered founding your own software company? Options may be (Single Choice) :
- Yes, and I have launched one (or more)
- Yes, and I've tried, but it didn't succeed
- Yes, but I haven't tried yet (e.g., due to lack of network, knowledge, or resources)
- No, I'm not interested in entrepreneurship; I prefer focusing on programming/technical work
- No, I find the complexities of business/startup too daunting
- No, I've never been interested in founding a company
📍 Why should you add this suggestions? : I believe many of developer has a entrepreneurship, but, how many to be able to do?, because all people need the money and always search the way how to earn, and such programmer we have the posibility to create a great impact to build service or tools, so, how many people considered founding your own software company?
Do you believe it is complicated for a programmer to start a successful software startup? Options may be (Single Choice):
- Yes, because it requires significant knowledge of business, marketing, and sales, which goes beyond just programming
- Yes, due to the need to manage many non-technical aspects (e.g., funding, legal, HR)
- No, because a strong technical background is a significant advantage in building the product and understanding the technology landscape
- No, the technical skills of a programmer are highly transferable and adaptable to startup challenges
- It depends on the individual's willingness to learn and adapt to non-technical roles
- Unsure / No strong opinion
📍 Why should you add this suggestions? : Follow-up the last question, in this case ask about an own opinion to user, if consider is complicated or not for any reason, but, I consider important to know why is the challenging
What were your primary reasons for transitioning into software development?
- Greater interest/passion for technology and programming.
- Better career opportunities/job security.
- Higher earning potential.
- Desire for more challenging or creative work.
- Flexibility (e.g., remote work opportunities, work-life balance).
- Dissatisfaction with previous profession.
- Influence from friends/family in the tech industry
📍 Why should you add this suggestions? : In this question would ideally follow-up about my first question in this suggestions, because is like to ask "why did you like software development" or "why were choosing software development"
In this questions, I think could be a new section, maybe "About your interesting"
Which of the following are among your hobbies or leisure activities? (Select all that apply) Options may be (Multiple Choice) :
- Reading books (fiction/non-fiction, technical/non-technical)
- Blogging/Content Creation (non-work related)
- Hiking/Trekking
- Cycling
- Collecting (e.g., records, stamps, games)
- Cooking/Baking
- Photography
- Gardening
- Playing video games
- Playing board games/Tabletop RPGs
- Sports/Fitness activities (e.g., gym, running, team sports)
- Making music/Playing an instrument
- Drawing/Painting/Crafts
- Volunteering/Community work
- Traveling
- Watching movies/TV series
- Learning new languages
📍 Why should you add this suggestions? : Well, I agree about the opinion about SachaG and this post , because the life didn't reduce only workplace issues and existential dread... it will great add the question for the next state of devs
@arashiyouni thanks for the detailed feedback! I'll definitely take this into account for next year.
- Ask respondents for country of origin + country they're living in
- and/or ask respondents if they're living in a different country than the one they're from
- Add question about main income source (e.g. salary/passive income/retirement/real estate/stocks/etc.)
Hi there, I have a couple of ones about psychological safety and management (they do have a big overlap). A bit of context first: I have anecdotical evidences that the industry recently is a lot bleaker than it was. (See this video from Alberta Tech: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/coiZ_0R0XFY)
The general idea is to make it easier to react to bad trends in the industry by a) verbalizing feelings so they become conscious, b) to obtain hard data whether we have industry-wide issues or not, c) once we have concretions motivate people to be critical and do something to change those bad trends (if they exist).
Some of these questions can be expanded; I think there's room for "State of Dev Management" survey asking questions about freedom at work, Agile practices, etc., but I kept these questions focused on "dev life quality".
Concrete question ideas
Pyschological safety and mental health
Q: [Psychological Safety] When it comes to your long term work safety at the place you work at, how many of these apply to your case? Select all that apply.
- [ ] I am worried that advances in AI/LLM will trigger a layoff that will affect me
- [ ] There were non-performance based layoffs at the place I work in the last 12 months
- [ ] I am not sure about the criteria at my workplace to avoid a layoff
- [ ] I am afraid to voice criticism about company decisions
- [ ] I can never gain deep expertise because of frequent tech changes (e.g. new frameworks, working mandatorily with unfamiliar programming languages, etc.)
Q: [Mental health] Select all the apply given your past three months! (These are signs of burnout, but we should not mention it.)
- [ ] I’ve felt emotionally drained at the end of the workday.
- [ ] I’ve had trouble focusing or staying motivated on tasks I used to enjoy.
- [ ] I’ve found myself procrastinating more than usual.
- [ ] I’ve felt like I’m just “going through the motions” at work.
- [ ] I’ve had trouble disconnecting from work outside working hours.
- [ ] I’ve felt less effective or capable than I used to.
- [ ] I’ve experienced more frequent frustration, irritability, or cynicism about work.
- [ ] I’ve had sleep difficulties or noticed changes in my sleep patterns.
Being Led: Management Competency
Q: [Work-life balance] How many of the following applies to your current workplace? Select all that apply!
- [ ] Overwork is encouraged/mandatory ("the grind is glorified")
- [ ] Overwork is not compensated (not paid or not matched with paid time off)
- [ ] Being on-call (e.g. being a potential responder to outages) is not compensated
- [ ] Taking time off (for vacation) is discouraged
- [ ] Remote work is not allowed
- [ ] I have to commute to work more than 90 minutes a day
- [ ] In the last year I took less than 10 days of vacation
- [ ] There's proactive measurement of exhaustion/burnout
- [ ] There's an on-site work therapist
OR this can be a full vacation question:
Q: [Vacation and resting I] How many days did you take off last year? [Numerical slider]
Q: [Vacation and resting II] Did you feel the amount of vacation was adequate last year?
- Too little to count
- Was not satisfactory
- Was satisfactory
- I was well-rested
Q: [Code sustainability] How is tech-debt tackled at your company? Select only one.
- Refactoring is discouraged, necessary non-feature work is done behind the back of management (tech debt denial).
- Refactoring is only possible as a part of feature work (boy-scout rule tech debt management).
- Working on pure refactoring tickets is allowed but it's on an individual basis (individual responsibility tech debt management).
- Tech debt is actively tracked, measured and prioritized by upper management (pro-active tech debt management).
Q: [Daily disruptions I] What's the percentage of meetings/deepwork at your company? [percentage slider: 0% only meetings, 100% only deepwork]
Q: [Daily disruptions II] The amount of meetings/chat messages I have to attend to at work is Select only one!
- too many/too ad-hoc, no respect for developer deep focus
- numerous, takes a huge portion away of focused work but well-organized
- meetings and disruptions are rare, deep work is possible at least 3 times a week
- work is remote-first, I can react to disruptions on my own time
The above list was from my ideas, I've put these through ChatGPT - I hope that I didn't flood this issue, but if you feel so just let me which comment I should delete: this or the other one.
I gotta say: the machine is better at being human while I'm still better programming the machine.
Psychological Safety & Job Security
Q: In terms of your long-term job security, which of the following have you experienced or felt in the past 6 months? (Select all that apply.)
- [ ] I’m concerned that AI or automation may lead to layoffs affecting my role.
- [ ] There have been layoffs at my workplace in that were not performance-related.
- [ ] I don’t clearly understand what criteria determine layoff decisions at my company.
- [ ] I hesitate to express critical feedback about company decisions.
- [ ] I find it difficult to build deep technical expertise due to frequent technology shifts or role changes.
Q: Over the past 3 months, which of the following have you regularly experienced? (Select all that apply.)
- [ ] Feeling emotionally drained after work.
- [ ] Difficulty staying focused or motivated on tasks you normally enjoy.
- [ ] Increased procrastination.
- [ ] Feeling detached or disengaged from your work.
- [ ] Difficulty disconnecting from work during non-work hours.
- [ ] Feeling less effective or capable than in the past.
- [ ] More frequent frustration, irritability, or cynicism at work.
- [ ] Sleep problems or changes in sleep patterns.
Q: Which of the following practices apply to your current work environment? (Select all that apply.)
- [ ] Long work hours are implicitly or explicitly encouraged.
- [ ] Extra work hours are not compensated through pay or time off.
- [ ] On-call duties are not formally compensated.
- [ ] Taking vacation or time off is discouraged or penalized.
- [ ] Remote work is not permitted.
- [ ] I commute more than 90 minutes daily.
- [ ] I took fewer than 10 vacation days last year.
- [ ] My workplace regularly checks for signs of overwork or burnout.
- [ ] My workplace provides access to a mental health professional (e.g., therapist or counselor).
Q: Roughly how many days of vacation (paid time off) did you take in the last 12 months? [Numerical slider or input]
Q: How would you describe the adequacy of your time off last year? Select one:
- Not nearly enough — I felt burnt out.
- Less than I needed.
- It was enough to feel okay.
- I felt well-rested and recharged.
Q: How is technical debt managed in your team or organization? Select one:
- It’s discouraged to spend time on tech debt; any work must be hidden within feature tickets.
- Tech debt is only addressed alongside new features (as a side-effect).
- Refactoring is allowed but depends on individual initiative, not organizational support.
- Tech debt is formally tracked, prioritized, and managed at a team or leadership level.
Q: In a typical week, what proportion of your time is available for focused, uninterrupted work (vs. meetings and communication)? [Slider: 0% deep work – 100% deep work]
Q: Which best describes the level of interruptions (e.g. meetings or chat messages) at your work? Select one:
- Frequent interruptions make it hard to focus; deep work is rarely possible.
- Many meetings and messages, but they’re scheduled and predictable.
- I usually get several blocks of uninterrupted work time each week.
- My work is structured for asynchronous collaboration and focus by default.
- remove Mobile OS
- remove Desktop OS
I can't really figure out what to do with those questions so I think it's safe to remove them next time…
- Ask what kind of programming side project people have (game/language learning/art/etc.)