SpecMind: Cognitively Inspired, Interactive Multi-Turn Framework for Postcondition Inference

ACL ARR 2026 January Submission1081 Authors

Keywords: automated software engineering, postcondition inference, program specifications, large language models, multi-turn prompting, interactive reasoning

Abstract: Specifications are vital for ensuring program correctness, yet writing them manually remains challenging and time-intensive. Recent large language model (LLM)-based methods have shown successes in generating specifications such as postconditions, but existing single-pass prompting often yields inaccurate results. In this paper, we present SpecMind, a novel framework for postcondition generation that treats LLMs as interactive and exploratory reasoners rather than one-shot generators. SpecMind employs feedback-driven multi-turn prompting approaches, enabling the model to iteratively refine candidate postconditions by incorporating implicit and explicit correctness feedback, while autonomously deciding when to stop. This process fosters deeper code comprehension and improves alignment with true program behavior via exploratory attempts. Our empirical evaluation shows that SpecMind significantly outperforms state-of-the-art approaches in both accuracy and completeness of generated postconditions.

Paper Type: Long

Research Area: NLP Applications

Research Area Keywords: code generation and understanding

Contribution Types: Model analysis & interpretability, NLP engineering experiment, Publicly available software and/or pre-trained models

Languages Studied: English

Submission Number: 1081