- a class or module should have only one reason to change
- limit the reasons for something to change - reduces dependencies and coupling
- it’s responsible for a single, specific task
- makes code more maintainable
As an example, consider a module that compiles and prints a report. Imagine such a module can be changed for two reasons. First, the content of the report could change. Second, the format of the report could change. These two things change for different causes. The single responsibility principle says that these two aspects of the problem are really two separate responsibilities, and should, therefore, be in separate classes or modules. It would be a bad design to couple two things that change for different reasons at different times.