The Unified Field Theory of Consciousness

Abstract This paper proposes a cognitive dynamical model centered on continuity rupture (privation) as a primary signal, aiming to explain the nonlinear evolutionary processes underlying meaning construction, emotion generation, and behavioral selection. The model is structured around five core components—Δ–T–BCM–RC–IEAS—which together describe how discrepancies (Δ) induced by external or internal events generate mismatches in meaning continuity within the Cognitive Complex (RC). These mismatches are transformed into tension (T), subsequently activating a Bias Calibration Mechanism (BCM) that drives the system either toward defensive homeostatic closure or toward structural reorganization. Within this framework, meaning is not treated as static content, belief, or evaluative judgment. Instead, it is rigorously defined as a continuity structure that can be sustained over time, selectively focused, and refracted across multiple hierarchical levels. Continuity rupture occurs when new meaning inputs, or the reactivation of historically unintegrated fissures, cannot be absorbed by the existing homeostatic state. Crucially, such rupture does not correspond directly to event intensity; rather, it is determined by the structural inertia, hierarchical distribution, and meaning-bearing capacity of the RC. The paper further argues that privation is neither pathological nor merely an emotional deficit. Instead, it constitutes a negative indicator of the missing components of a previously stable “complete form” after a specific dimension of continuity has been breached. Privation carries inverse information regarding the system’s potential directions of integration and can therefore serve as a critical clue for inferring the trajectory of individual meaning evolution. The intensity and representational form of tension are jointly shaped by the hierarchical level of rupture (L1–L4) and by the distribution of meaning focus within the cognitive system—a mechanism that simultaneously accounts for the elastic distortion of subjective time experience. Under this model, the BCM is strictly defined as a neutral mechanism for calibrating meaning deviation. It operates through three functional tools: the Doubt Generator, the Future Projection Apparatus, and the Meaning Contamination Source. The BCM responds not only to novel meaning inputs but is also automatically activated when historically unintegrated meaning nodes are re-evoked. The system’s eventual carrying outcome—including condition-dependent externally controlled homeostasis or structurally self-consistent introspective integration—depends on the historical inertia of the RC and the real-time availability of the Intrinsic Energy and Support System (IEAS) as a source of structural support. This paper demonstrates that the proposed model provides a unified dynamical language capable of systematically explaining phenomena such as fear responses, anxiety and impatience, willpower depletion, shifts in intentional polarity, experiences associated with the “law of attraction,” and forms of religious awakening. All of these phenomena can be reduced to distinct pathways through which the system reconstructs stability under calibration pressure following meaning continuity rupture at different hierarchical levels. Finally, the paper discusses the theoretical boundaries, operational definitions, and falsifiability pathways of the model, offering a testable integrative framework for cognitive science, clinical psychology, and consciousness studies.