General developer forum

Hello,
 
my name is Igor Steinmacher and I am a Research Scholar at University of California, Irvine. I am conducting a research aiming at finding how to support new contributors during their first steps in the project.  My final goal is to verify what kind of tooling is appropriate  to  support  the  newcomers  overcoming  their  difficulties  when  they  are willing to contribute to the project.
 
The first step of my research is to find out what are the main obstacles and difficulties faced by these newcomers. My goal is to hear from the community itself, interviewing new contributors and core members.  
 
By having the information regarding the main problems, I will start figuring out which mechanisms  can  be  applied  to  provide  the  support.  I  will  keep  the  anonymity  of interviewers and I have the commitment to publish/return the results of my research to the community.
 
I need your help answering my interview. We will conduct the interviews via textual chat, and we can schedule it at the time that fits better for you. Please send me a private email if you are interested in supporting my research ( igorsteinmacher <at> gmail com ).
 
I  also  request  your  help  reaching  out  contributors  so  that  I  can  gather  the  best information. The data will help gain insights about newcomer issues, and allow us to propose initiatives to alleviate the problems faced by newcomers, as a tentative to retain them.
 
To volunteer you must be 18 years or older, be English speaking, and have experience in software development.  
 
Feel free to contact me in case you have any doubt or question regarding my research or the interview process.