Reflection programming for effective emotions engineering

Reflection programming, in Computer Science, has been around since assembly language era. Even in today’s world of cloud computing it’s very much prevalent – albeit hidden under the labyrinths of multiple frameworks. Some of the powerful programming constructs like late binding, auto-wiring, dependency injection or marshalling & unmarshalling all owe their existence to the concept of reflection. Simply put, reflection is an ability of a process to analyze and modify its own structure and/or behavior at runtime (when a program is being executed).  The operative keywords here are: analyze, modify and at runtime. We’ll revisit these dots as we progress further.

But what on earth, reflection programming has anything to do with the emotions ? Well, a lot ! We all have had moments when we thought, we could have managed a certain situation better than we actually did – be it in our personal space or professional or even social one. These thoughts invariably have one tacit acknowledgement in common – our response(s) to that specific situation could have been different, and they weren't. If at all, we’d been well-equipped then, we could’ve managed it differently than we actually did. Or, to put other way: if we’d the ability to analyze and modify our responses when the situation was unfolding, wouldn’t it have helped ? Now see the dots connecting ?

But is it that easy as its sounding ? Definitely not ! Like any software programming, this too needs basic tenets of programming like a well-established framework, some core utility functions, exceptions handling – and above all, a good practice to master it.

• Framework : This programming is based on the framework of Emotional Intelligence; and need its thorough understanding
• Core utility functions : Encoding & decoding capabilities (to transform emotions to feelings, and vice versa)
• Exceptions Handling : We’re free to create our custom exceptions, as appropriate. But we must handle them

Armed with above know-how, let’s see how a pseudo program will look like:

import framework

import core utility functions


begin

  while faced with unsettling situation

    do {

          call function to analyze emotions / response

          call function to modify default feelings / biases

          invoke new response, as appropriate


        } catch Exceptions (Fake Analysis, Half-hearted Approach)

  end while

end

Like any programming, this too has its pros and cons, as below :

Benefits :

• Better relationships in all walks of life
• Effective conflict management
• Ability to respond well to challenging situations
• Can push our own envelope by eliminating stereotypes or biases

Drawbacks

• Steep learning curve : primarily for the unlearning of our old habits
• It’s expensive : need resources and processing power to get it right

 As mentioned earlier, it’s easier said than done – and requires a real intent and high perseverance. But if done right, with strong self-belief, the rewards are immense. And yes, one size won’t fit all here – we all need to find our own mojo; just the way different programming languages have implemented the concept of Reflection Programming.