Beyond Objects

2026-06-25

AI Summary

This work proposes a novel software construction paradigm that fundamentally departs from the core assumptions of object-oriented programming. By decoupling problem-domain entities from functional modules, the approach enables independent organization and reuse of functionality, thereby addressing the fragmentation of features and entanglement of responsibilities commonly induced by binding system behavior to individual domain objects. The proposed paradigm adopts a non-object-oriented modular design that substantially mitigates architectural coupling stemming from rigid object boundaries. As a result, it offers a clearer, more flexible, and maintainable pathway for modeling complex systems, overcoming key limitations inherent in traditional object-oriented approaches.

Abstract

A core principle of object orientation -- that the functionality of a system can be partitioned amongst objects that correspond to individuals in the problem domain -- has influenced how software has been specified, designed and implemented for more than fifty years. Later developments in software engineering sought to build on this principle. But in fact this partitioning is neither natural nor straightforward, and the problems that these later developments sought to mitigate -- the fragmentation and conflation of functionality -- were often, in fact, the inevitable consequences of this founding principle. An easier path to addressing these problems therefore starts by going back, abandoning object orientation, and replacing it with an alternative approach that decouples the individuals of the problem domain from the modules that partition functionality.

Problem

• object orientation
• functionality partitioning
• fragmentation
• conflation
• software design

Innovation

• object orientation
• functional partitioning
• problem domain decoupling
• software modularity
• paradigm shift