Coupling vs. Cohesion: The Two Forces That Shape Good Software
Good software is not only about making each component work. It is also about deciding: What belongs together? What should stay separate? Which modules should know about each other? How much knowledge should one component have about another? What should happen when one part of the system changes? Two concepts help answer these questions: Cohesion: how closely related the responsibilities inside a…
Good software design hinges on two crucial concepts: cohesion and coupling. Cohesion refers to how closely related the responsibilities inside a module are. A highly cohesive module focuses on a single clear purpose, making it easier to understand, test, and maintain. On the other hand, coupling describes the degree of dependency between different modules.
Tightly coupled modules know too much about each other, making changes in one module ripple through the entire system. The ideal scenario is high cohesion within modules and low coupling between modules, as it promotes understandability, testability, scalability, and ease of change. However, achieving this balance can be challenging when developers rush to implement features under pressure, often leading to tightly coupled code that becomes difficult to modify.
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