A Dynamical Model of Subjectivity: Integrating Affective Gain, Cognitive Bias, and Self-Regulation
August 18, 2025 Takeo Imaizumi preprint
A control-theoretic model formalizes how affective gain and cognitive bias interact to shape subjective experience. Bifurcation analysis of the model's potential function produces a Mind Topography Map showing stability regimes across the gain-bias plane. The landscape exhibits cusp and pitchfork bifurcations that generate qualitative shifts corresponding to stable belief convergence, cognitive polarization, and mood-like oscillations. An Ideal Dynamical Equilibrium at gain=1 and bias=0 represents optimal stability and responsiveness. An exploratory extension uses structural matrices to capture person-specific traits and mixed-emotion states. The framework unifies dynamical-systems analysis with agentic self-regulation, offering mathematically precise, falsifiable hypotheses for empirical studies.