Decoupling reduces the degree to which one component’s behavior or structure depends on another’s. In systems engineering, tight coupling makes systems brittle: changes in one component propagate unexpectedly through others, and components cannot be understood, tested, or replaced in isolation.

Decoupling work does not change what a system does — only how its parts relate. It is distinguished from interface work in that decoupling removes an existing dependency, while interface work establishes or defines a boundary.