OOP environments comprise composite data structures and internal mechanisms for manipulating those structures. The structures are used to allow a user to realize the power of OOP. Hence, the layout of these structures, the way in which the structures inter-relate, and the manner in which they are built and used are all critical to the utility of a particular OOP environment. It is no surprise, then, that manufacturers and suppliers of OOP environments are constantly striving to design composite data structures and internal mechanisms which maximize user productivity. The internal mechanisms and structures that make up the present invention are collectively referred to as the New Object Model (NOM). The composite data structures and organization of the NOM OOP environment provide significant benefits that are not provided by the environments of the prior art. These benefits include: a more efficient method resolution scheme and the ability to add method programs and object instance data to a class definition without the need to recompile the majority of the code base.