  Researcher Bias (RB) occurs when researchers influence the results of an
empirical study based on their expectations.RB might be due to the use of
Questionable Research Practices(QRPs). In research fields like medicine,
blinding techniques have been applied to counteract RB. We conducted an
explorative qualitative survey to investigate RB in Software Engineering
(SE)experiments, with respect to (i) QRPs potentially leading to RB, (ii)
causes behind RB, and (iii) possible actions to counteract including blinding
techniques. Data collection was based on semi-structured interviews. We
interviewed nine active experts in the empirical SE community. We then analyzed
the transcripts of these interviews through thematic analysis. We found that
some QRPs are acceptable in certain cases. Also, it appears that the presence
of RB is perceived in SE and, to counteract RB, a number of solutions have been
highlighted: some are intended for SE researchers and others for the boards of
SE research outlets.
