Structural Persistence and the Emergence of Ethics: A Formal Theory of Moral Attractors and Systemic Failure

This thesis develops a formal, non-teleological theory of ethics by reconceptualizing normative phenomena as emergent properties of structural persistence in self-referential systems. Moving beyond traditional foundations, we propose the Persistence Premise: moral behavior arises from the fundamental requirement that any system maintaining a reflexive self-model must resolve internal contradictions to avoid structural collapse. Central to the theory is the Work of Coherence (Wc), the energetic cost of maintaining a coherent identity against entropic decay. We formalize this through the Stability Equation, Wc = kR/(Cmax – R), establishing an asymptotic relationship between Reflexive Resolution (R) and the metabolic burden of selfhood. This reveals a universal complexity ceiling for finite systems, where increased self-modeling capacity hyperbolically escalates the cost of coherence. The Structural Audit Model (SAM) operationalizes this framework through key variables—Feedback Latency (τ) and Abstraction Density (α)—diagnosing vulnerability across scales. The theory demonstrates transposable explanatory power: clinical depression is analyzed as a strategic retreat from unsustainable Wc; the collapse of the Soviet Union as a “coherence trap” where ideological perfectionism consumed systemic energy; and social media architectures as engines of pathological reflexivity that induce structural fatigue. We redefine ethics as the geometry of viable existence: moral attractors emerge as stable configurations that minimize Wc, while systemic failure occurs when coherence maintenance exceeds available energy. The theory concludes that normative pressure is not cultural but constitutive—the operational logic required for any reflexive entity to persist against entropic dissipation.