Cognitive Load Reviewer

name: cognitive-load-reviewer description: Analyze and reduce cognitive load in code by identifying complex conditionals, deep nesting, shallow modules, excessive abstractions, and architectural over-engineering. Use when reviewing code quality, refactoring for maintainability, or simplifying systems. Keywords: cognitive load, complexity, refactor, simplify, maintainability, readability, mental overhead, abstraction, architecture review

Cognitive Load Reviewer

Identifies and reduces extraneous cognitive load in software systems following evidence-based principles.

Core Principle

Working Memory Limit: Humans can hold ~4 chunks of information simultaneously. Code exceeding this threshold creates mental fatigue and slows development.

Goal: Reduce extraneous cognitive load (caused by poor design) while accepting intrinsic load (inherent domain complexity).

Analysis Framework

1. Complex Conditionals

Look for:

• Nested boolean expressions: if val > X && (a || b) && (c && !d)
• Multiple conditions without intermediate variables
• Logic requiring mental simulation to understand

Fix:

// ❌ High cognitive load
if val > constant && (cond2 || cond3) && (cond4 && !cond5) {
    // ...
}

// ✅ Externalized mental bookkeeping
let exceeds_threshold = val > constant;
let has_valid_mode = cond2 || cond3;
let is_enabled = cond4 && !cond5;

if exceeds_threshold && has_valid_mode && is_enabled {
    // ...
}

2. Deep Nesting

Look for:

• Multiple levels of indentation (>3 levels)
• Nested if/match statements
• Accumulated context requirements

Fix:

// ❌ Nested context tracking
fn process(data: Option<Data>) -> Result<Output> {
    if let Some(data) = data {
        if data.is_valid() {
            if let Some(result) = data.compute() {
                return Ok(result);
            }
        }
    }
    Err(Error::Invalid)
}

// ✅ Early returns focus on happy path
fn process(data: Option<Data>) -> Result<Output> {
    let data = data.ok_or(Error::Missing)?;
    if !data.is_valid() {
        return Err(Error::Invalid);
    }
    data.compute().ok_or(Error::ComputeFailed)
}

3. Shallow vs. Deep Modules

Identify shallow modules:

• Complex interface with minimal functionality
• Many small functions/methods requiring multiple mental models
• High coupling between components

Prefer deep modules:

• Simple interface hiding complex implementation
• Unix I/O principle: 5 basic calls, 100K+ lines internal complexity
• Single entry point with clear contract

Example:

// ❌ Shallow - many small pieces
struct UserValidator;
struct PasswordHasher;
struct SessionCreator;
struct TokenGenerator;
// ... requires understanding 4+ components

// ✅ Deep - simple interface, complex internals
struct AuthService {
    pub fn authenticate(&self, credentials: Credentials) -> Result<Session>
    // Hides validation, hashing, session creation internally
}

4. Abstraction Layers

Red flags:

• Hexagonal/Onion architecture with 5+ layers
• Repository patterns abstracting simple queries
• Domain/Application/Infrastructure separation without clear benefit
• "MetricsProviderFactoryFactory" naming patterns

Reality check:

• Can newcomers contribute within hours or days?
• Does debugging require tracing through multiple layers?
• Are abstraction layers solving real extension points or architectural purity?

Principle: Add abstraction only for justified extension points, not preemptive flexibility.

5. DRY Abuse

Look for:

• Shared code between unrelated domains
• Premature abstractions creating tight coupling
• "Generic" utilities requiring mental mapping

Guideline:

// ✅ "A little copying is better than a little dependency"
// Duplicate 5-10 lines if it maintains clarity and independence
// Abstract only when 3+ use cases demonstrate clear pattern

6. Microservices Over-Granularity

Warning signs:

• Changes require modifying 4+ services
• Distributed monolith patterns
• More services than team members

Case study: 5 developers, 17 microservices → 10 months behind schedule

Principle: Defer network boundaries until logical system boundaries are clear.

7. Framework Magic

Look for:

• Business logic embedded in framework code
• Annotations/macros hiding control flow
• "Magic" requiring framework internals knowledge before contributing

Fix:

// ❌ Framework-coupled business logic
#[framework::magic_handler]
async fn process_order(ctx: FrameworkContext) -> FrameworkResponse {
    // Business logic intertwined with framework
}

// ✅ Framework as library, business logic separate
async fn process_order(order: Order) -> Result<Receipt> {
    // Pure business logic, framework-agnostic
}

// Adapter layer handles framework integration

8. Self-Describing Values

Look for:

• Numeric error codes requiring mental mappings
• Boolean flags without semantic names
• Magic numbers without constants

Fix:

// ❌ Requires memorization
return Err(401);

// ✅ Self-describing
return Err(AuthError::JwtExpired);

// ❌ Magic number
if status == 418 { ... }

// ✅ Named constant
const TEAPOT_STATUS: u16 = 418;
if status == TEAPOT_STATUS { ... }

9. Inheritance Hierarchies

Look for:

• Multiple inheritance levels (>2)
• Vertical cognitive chains requiring class-hopping
• Overridden behavior modifications

Prefer:

• Composition over inheritance
• Trait/interface implementations without deep hierarchies
• Flat structures with explicit dependencies

Analysis Process

Step 1: Identify Cognitive Hotspots

Scan code for:

• Functions >50 lines
• Nesting depth >3 levels
• Complex boolean logic
• Multiple abstraction layers
• Module coupling patterns

Step 2: Measure Mental Overhead

Ask:

• How many facts must I hold in memory?
• Can I understand this without context-switching?
• Would a newcomer understand this in <5 minutes?
• Does this require memorizing mappings/conventions?

Step 3: Categorize Load Type

• Intrinsic: Domain complexity (accept it)
• Extraneous: Design choices (fix it)

Step 4: Recommend Improvements

Prioritize:

1. High impact, low effort: Extract intermediate variables, early returns
2. Medium impact: Simplify module boundaries, reduce abstractions
3. Strategic: Architecture simplification, framework decoupling

Output Format

Present findings as:

🧠 Cognitive Load Analysis

High Load Areas (>4 mental chunks required)

• crates/parser/src/query.rs:145 - Complex conditional with 6 boolean clauses
• crates/storage/src/engine.rs:89 - 5 levels of nesting, difficult to track state

Shallow Module Patterns (complex interface, minimal functionality)

• StorageAdapter + QueryExecutor + ResultMapper could merge into single QueryEngine

Excessive Abstraction

• Repository pattern adds indirection without extension points
• Consider direct SQL calls via jOOQ-style query builder

Improvement Priorities

1. Extract intermediate variables in query.rs:145

   let has_valid_columns = !columns.is_empty() && columns.iter().all(|c| c.is_valid());
   let within_bounds = offset >= 0 && limit <= MAX_LIMIT;
   if has_valid_columns && within_bounds { ... }
   

2. Flatten nesting in engine.rs:89 using early returns

3. Merge shallow modules to create deeper interface with simpler mental model

Onboarding Metric

Critical test: Can a new developer contribute within 1-2 days?

If newcomers struggle >40 consecutive minutes, cognitive load needs reduction.

Project Integration

Reference CLAUDE.md principles:

• Incremental development reduces cognitive overhead
• TDD externalizes requirements into tests
• Small commits maintain reviewability
• Parallel sub-agents distribute analysis cognitive load

Success Examples

• Instagram: 14M users with 3 engineers (simple architecture)
• Unix I/O: Deep module pattern (5 calls, 100K+ lines hidden)
• Raft consensus: Designed explicitly for understandability

Anti-Pattern Summary

❌ Overly granular module decomposition ❌ Excessive architectural layers without benefit ❌ Numeric codes requiring memorization ❌ Framework-embedded business logic ❌ Premature DRY abstractions ❌ Deep inheritance chains ❌ Nested conditionals without intermediate variables ❌ Shallow modules forcing multi-component mental models

Remember

"The best components provide powerful functionality yet have a simple interface."

Optimize for reducing the mental effort required to understand and modify code.