Extending the Core Emotion Framework: A Structural-Constructivist Model for Obsessive- Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

This manuscript extends the Core Emotion Framework (CEF)—a novel structural-
constructivist model of emotional regulation—to define the unique structural
fingerprint of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). The analysis reveals that the
disorder's transdiagnostic signature is the systemic outsourcing of cognitive function
to action. This mechanism arises from the failure of the Head Center's Calculating
primer, leading to Intolerance of Uncertainty (IU), which pathologically activates the
Gut Center's Arranging primer to manufacture certainty via compulsive ritual. The
manuscript establishes direct structural equivalence between core CEF deficits and
established treatment modalities, indexing the rigid Arranging deficit to ERP, the
suppressed Accepting to ACT, and the Calculating deficit to CBT. This indexing
function provides a precise, mechanism-based roadmap for treatment sequencing,
advancing personalized medicine in affective science. Related Protocols and
Foundational Work (CEF Ecosystem): This theoretical work is supported by open
validation protocols hosted on the Open Science Framework (OSF), including DOI
10.17605/OSF.IO/SG3KM and 10.17605/OSF.IO/4RXUV.