Using eye tracking to study variable naming conventions and their effect on code readability

Abstract: Using camel case when naming variables is largely considered to be best practise when writing code these days. But is it really the best variable naming convention when it comes to code readability and understanding? And how does different variable naming conventions affect the readability of code? This thesis researches these questions using eye tracking technology. Test subjects are timed as they look at and explain code snippets using different variable naming conventions while their gaze is plotted onto a heatmap. The variable naming conventions tested were single letters, single words, multiple words in camel case and multiple words in snake case. From the results shown, the conclusion is drawn that no significant difference in readability can be confirmed between the different variable naming conventions.