Composition Over Inheritance
Composition Over Inheritance is a software design principle that favors building complex objects by combining simpler, reusable components (composition) rather than inheriting behavior from parent classes (inheritance). It promotes flexibility, reduces coupling, and avoids issues like the fragile base class problem. This principle is widely applied in object-oriented programming to create more maintainable and scalable code.
Developers should use composition over inheritance when designing systems that require high flexibility, such as in frameworks or libraries where components need to be easily swapped or extended. It is particularly useful in scenarios like game development (e.g., character abilities) or UI frameworks (e.g., React components) to avoid deep inheritance hierarchies and enable better code reuse. This approach helps in testing and refactoring by isolating responsibilities into smaller, independent units.