Wodel-Test: A model-based framework for engineering language-specific mutation testing tools
Pablo Gómez‐Abajo, Esther Guerra, Juan D. Lara · SoftwareX · 2025
Mutation testing (MuT) is a well-known technique for assessing the quality of software test suites. It relies on the artificial injection of errors into the source code, which results in a collection of variations called mutants . These can be used to improve a given test suite, i.e., those mutants not detected by the test suite reveal missing test cases. However, creating MuT tools from scratch for each language and domain is costly and error-prone. To fill this gap, we propose Wodel-Test , a tool based on Model-driven Engineering principles that facilitates the creation of domain-specific MuT tools, reducing the effort compared to ad-hoc coding. We have applied this framework to create MuT tools for a variety of languages, including logic circuits, automata, Java, the Atlas Transformation Language (ATL), and task-oriented chatbots, showing its versatility and usefulness.