Reification in software:

Reification is a popular technique to reduce complexity of the software design process. This technique has to be re-investigated for the comprehensive object-oriented approach. Object-oriented specifications comprise structure and behavior of systems. Due to this sophisticated idea two kinds of reification appear: data reification and action reification.

There's another, (more?) pernicious, form of reification in software: when user requirements are transmitted to the software designer. Ideally the person designing the software should sit down with the user, and design an application according to the user's requirements, but for a variety of reasons designers get requirements from people who are not the users. When that is the case, while the software itself may have an object representing the user that is reified--with all the compromises that requires--in addition the user object is itself based on reified users and not actual users--reality-based users and not real users.  ¶ 7:58 PM