A Systematic Literature Review on Large Language Models for Automated Program Repair
Research on large language models (LLMs) for automated program repair (APR) remains fragmented and lacks a systematic, unified understanding. Method: We conduct a systematic literature review (SLR) covering 127 papers published between 2020 and 2024, establishing the first comprehensive conceptual framework for LLM-based APR. We categorize model utilization strategies into three types—fine-tuning, prompt engineering, and hybrid ensemble—and perform multidimensional thematic analysis across input representation, semantic/security-specific repair scenarios, and open-science practices. Contribution/Results: We identify core challenges including model robustness, evaluation bias, and real-world deployment adaptability. The study yields a reusable taxonomy, benchmark insights, and methodological guidelines—delivering the APR community’s first holistic landscape map to precisely identify research gaps and inform future innovation pathways.