Non-Limi ing Technology: An Ini ial P oposal o an Eme ging
Concep in So wa e Enginee ing
Ta iana Ca agena1, Ra ael A a´
ujo Rod igues1
1TECISLab – Technology, Inno a ion & Social Impac Lab
[email p o ec ed]
P ep in No ice. This sho pape is a p ep in e sion cu en ly unde submission o a
scien i ic con e ence. The con en has no unde gone pee e iew.
Abs ac . This pape p esen s he ini ial p oposal o Non-Limi ing Technology
(NLT), an eme ging concep in So wa e Enginee ing ha seeks o e hink he
ole o echnology in human de elopmen . Unlike pa adigms such as acces-
sibili y, usabili y, and inclusi e design, NLT is based on he p inciple ha e-
chnology should no impose limi s on indi iduals’ cogni i e, social, o e hical
capaci ies, bu a he enhance hei g ow h. The pape discusses ela ed heo-
e ical ounda ions, de ines he ini ial concep ual pilla s o NLT, and poin s ou
u u e esea ch di ec ions. I ep esen s a concep ual e o o in i e he commu-
ni y o explo e new me ics and p ac ices o a mo e human-cen e ed so wa e
enginee ing.
Resumo. Es e a igo ap esen a a p opos a inicial da Tecnologia N˜
ao Limi an e
(TNL), um concei o eme gen e na Engenha ia de So wa e que busca epensa
o papel da ecnologia no desen ol imen o humano. Di e en e de pa adigmas
como acessibilidade, usabilidade e design inclusi o, a TNL pa e do p inc´
ıpio
de que a ecnologia n˜
ao de e impo limi es `
as capacidades cogni i as, sociais
e´
e icas dos indi ´
ıduos, mas sim po encializa seu c escimen o. O a igo dis-
cu e os undamen os e´
o icos elacionados, de ine pila es concei uais iniciais
da TNL e apon a caminhos u u os de pesquisa. T a a-se de um es o c¸o con-
cei ual pa a con ida a comunidade a explo a no as m´
e icas e p ´
a icas pa a
uma engenha ia de so wa e mais humana.
1. In oduc ion
Since he 1960s, So wa e Enginee ing has sough o balance echnical quali y, such
as eliabili y, pe o mance, and main ainabili y [P essman 2011], wi h conce ns e-
la ed o he use expe ience, including usabili y, accessibili y, and inclusi e design
[Roge s e al. 2013]. These ad ances ha e con ibu ed o making he ield’s knowl-
edge mo e e icien and accessible. Howe e , e en hough he e a e ini ia i es o in-
co po a e human and cogni i e aspec s, s udies ha in es iga e he long- e m impac
o echnology on human cogni i e de elopmen emain sca ce [Guna ilake e al. 2024,
Fage holm e al. 2022].
The li e a u e shows ha digi al echnologies p oduce dual e ec s: hey can bo h
expand and limi cogni i e and social abili ies. Resea ch dis inguishes be ween e ec s
wi h echnology (immedia e pe o mance gains) and e ec s o echnology (las ing cog-
ni i e esidues ha emain a e use) [SALOMON e al. 1991]. The use o echnology
can ac as a p o ec i e cogni i e ese e bu is also associa ed wi h he isk o digi-
al demen ia, depending on he ype o engagemen [Benge and Scullin 2025]. Recen
e iews con i m ha , while digi al ools can p omo e collabo a ion and lea ning, hey
can also lead o a en ional o e load, excessi e dependence, and ul ima ely induce cog-
ni i e and social a ophies when no designed wi h app op ia e c i e ia [Ba os 2024,
Shanmugasunda am 2023].
In his con ex , we p opose he concep o Non-Limi ing Technology (NLT), which
eme ges as a concep ual p oposi ion wi hin So wa e Enginee ing. NLT encou ages he
design o so wa e ha a oids cogni i e cons ain s, educes dependence, and expands
human capabili ies. The pu pose o his a icle is o p esen he ini ial p oposal o NLT,
ou lining i s dis inc ions (2), in oducing i s concep ual pilla s (3), and opening a esea ch
agenda (4). This s udy in i es e lec ion: How can we build so wa e ha no only wo ks
bu also does no limi human po en ial?
2. Rela ed Wo k
The Non-Limi ing Technology (NLT) p oposal is si ua ed wi hin he con ex o So wa e
Enginee ing, es ablishing a complemen a y dialogue wi h e e ence a eas. Al hough hese
a eas a e well-es ablished, hey s ill p esen a concep ual gap ega ding how o p e en
limi a ions on human de elopmen , especially conce ning long- e m cogni i e aspec s
[Guna ilake e al. 2024, Fage holm e al. 2022].
Accessibili y, o example, ocuses on emo ing ba ie s ha p e en indi iduals
wi h senso y, mo o , o cogni i e disabili ies om using so wa e, ollowing guidelines
such as he WCAG [W3C Web Accessibili y Ini ia i e 2018]. I s mission is o ensu e
equi able access; howe e , i s scope does no include he cumula i e o de elopmen al
cogni i e e ec s ha may eme ge om long- e m echnology use. Simila ly, usabili y
has enhanced he quali y o human-compu e in e ac ion h ough me ics o e iciency
and sa is ac ion [Nielsen 1994], bu i s emphasis emains on immedia e pe o mance ou -
comes, wi hou add essing po en ial esidual e ec s such as o e load o dependence ha
NLT seeks o p e en .
Inclusi e and uni e sal design ad ances his discussion by p oposing ha sys ems
be concei ed o accommoda e a g ea e di e si y o use p o iles [Cla kson e al. 2013],
ein o cing he impo ance o hinking beyond he “s anda d” use . Ne e heless, i does
no es ablish as a c i e ion whe he echnology, o e ime, is enhancing o cons ain-
ing use s’ capabili ies. So wa e quali y models [ISO/IEC 2011] sys ema ize c ucial a -
ibu es such as eliabili y, secu i y, and main ainabili y. Al hough usabili y is included in
hei axonomy, he absence o p inciples o me ics ela ed o human impac o long- e m
cogni i e non-limi a ion e eals an impo an concep ual gap.
Wi hin his pano ama, NLT aims o complemen hese a eas. While ela ed do-
mains deal wi h access, in e ac ion, and echnical a ibu es, NLT places a he o e on
he undamen al p emise o designing so wa e ha does no impose limi s o a ophies
on he po en ial o human cogni i e de elopmen .
3. P oposal: Non-Limi ing Technology (NLT)
This s udy p oposes he concep o Non-Limi ing Technology (NLT) as a guiding p in-
ciple o So wa e Enginee ing. I s cen al p emise is ha so wa e should be concei ed
in a way ha does no impose limi s o induce a ophies in human cogni i e de elop-
men . Unlike pa adigms such as accessibili y, usabili y, and inclusi e design, NLT adop s
non-limi a ion as a undamen al c i e ion o so wa e c ea ion, ocusing on i s long- e m
impac s.
3.1. Ini ial De ini ion
NLT es ablishes ha so wa e design mus conside , om i s ea lies s ages, he p ese -
a ion and expansion o use s’ cogni i e, social, and e hical capaci ies. A non-limi ing
so wa e sys em, he e o e, is one ha , beyond ul illing i s echnical unc ion, a oids in-
ducing dependence o loss o abili ies (deskilling), while ac i ely os e ing use au onomy
and con inuous g ow h.
3.2. Concep ual Pilla s
To ensu e ha NLT is no me ely an abs ac ion, i s ini ial pilla s de i e om gaps and
e idence iden i ied in he li e a u e on echnology, neu oscience, and cogni ion. These
pilla s cons i u e he concep ual dimensions ha will guide he de elopmen o u u e
design guidelines:
•Cogni i e: Focuses on p e en ing excessi e dependence and skill loss
(deskilling), seeking o p omo e las ing echnological e ec s on execu i e unc-
ions (such as a en ion, memo y, and planning) a he han me ely achie ing
sho - e m pe o mance gains [SALOMON e al. 1991, Guna ilake e al. 2024,
Ba os 2024, Shanmugasunda am 2023].
•E hical: Aims o p ese e use au onomy and p i acy, ensu ing ha so wa e-
suppo ed decisions emain subjec o human ques ioning and e ision. This p e-
en s he isk o un e lec i e au oma ion and he weakening o c i ical judgmen
[Ba os 2024, Shanmugasunda am 2023].
•Social: Ac i ely seeks o p omo e inclusion and collabo a ion, p e en ing so -
wa e om con ibu ing o isola ion, cogni i e o e load, o es ic ed access o
di e se pe spec i es [Shanmugasunda am 2023].
•Long-Te m Human De elopmen : Emphasizes li elong lea ning and con inuous
g ow h, conside ing he cumula i e e ec s o echnology use ha ans e beyond
he immedia e ask con ex [SALOMON e al. 1991, Guna ilake e al. 2024].
These ou pilla s do no eplace o in alida e exis ing consolida ed a eas; a he ,
hey add a complemen a y and essen ial dimension a cen al conce n wi h he long- e m
e ec s o so wa e on human cogni i e and social de elopmen .
4. Discussion and Fu u e Wo k
The in oduc ion o Non-Limi ing Technology (NLT) aims o es ablish a new pe spec i e
o designing so wa e ha enhances human de elopmen while p e en ing cogni i e a -
ophies and limi a ions. To add ess he esea ch ques ion “How can we build so wa e ha
no only wo ks bu also does no limi human po en ial?” his s udy adop s non-limi a ion
as a undamen al equi emen o so wa e cons uc ion, s uc u ing ou concep ual pil-
la s (Cogni i e, E hical, Social, and Human De elopmen ) o guide his p ocess. This
app oach s ands ou because, while a eas such as accessibili y, usabili y, and inclusi e
design ocus p ima ily on access and immedia e in e ac ion, NLT emphasizes he need o
conside he long- e m cogni i e, social, and e hical impac s o echnology. I ecognizes
ha so wa e can ac as ei he an ampli ie o a cons ain on human capabili ies.
I is impo an o highligh ha his wo k is an ini ial heo e ical essay, based on
he iden i ica ion o concep ual gaps wi hin echnology- and cogni ion- ela ed domains.
Thus, he p oposed pilla s cu en ly ep esen concep ual dimensions, no ye es ablished
design p inciples. Acco dingly, he main challenge and nex s ep in his esea ch is he
ansi ion om concep ual o mula ion o empi ical alida ion o he p oposed pilla s.
This de ines a esea ch agenda ocused on: (i) conduc ing empi ical s udies o alida e
and e ine he pilla s; (ii) de eloping a i ac s and ins umen s o e alua ing so wa e
h ough he NLT lens; and (iii) ad ancing he o mula ion o guidelines and p ac ical
p inciples o suppo So wa e Enginee ing p ac ice.
Au ho Con ibu ions
Ta iana Ca agena is he o iginal au ho o he e m and concep o Non-Limi ing Tech-
nology (NLT), being esponsible o he heo e ical concep ion and manusc ip w i ing.
Ra ael A a´
ujo Rod igues con ibu ed wi h a c i ical e iew o he ex . Bo h au ho s ap-
p o ed he inal e sion o he manusc ip .
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