A mapping study of the definitions used for Service Oriented Architecture

Context: Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) has formed the basis for many workshops, conferences and books. However these do not always seem to have used a consistent set of concepts. Objectives: To identify the key characteristics of an SOA as identified from the literature. Method: We report on our experience of undertaking a mapping study (a form of systematic literature review) to identify the different definitions of SOA being used in the literature. Results: We found 921 candidate studies, of which only 98 were explicit about the definitions of SOA that were used. Conclusion: We have demonstrated that a mapping study can be usefully employed to identify inconsistencies and help to create a model of SOA.