Psychology as a Space of Possible Minds: A Generative Meta-Theory

This paper develops a generative meta-theory for psychology that reframes the discipline as the systematic characterization of the space of possible minds under constraints imposed by neural architecture, embodiment, and knowledge ecologies. Rather than studying central tendencies or isolated mechanisms, we propose a formal framework that (1) defines parameter spaces for brain-structure constraints (B), embodied development environments (E), and knowledge/learning ecologies (K); (2) specifies a generative mapping F:B×E×K→M that produces mind-configurations; (3) operationalizes reachability and stability through dynamical operators; and (4) furnishes concrete empirical and computational methods to explore, constrain, and validate the theory. We develop mathematical definitions, propose metrics (e.g., cognitive degrees of freedom, structural complexity, and attractor basins), provide simulation-ready pseudocode, and derive testable predictions. The paper aims to transform psychology into a constraint-based generative science focused on what minds can become, why some configurations are reachable and stable, and how environments and learning ecologies alter the topology of the possible-mind space.

Keywords: possible minds, generative psychology, dynamical systems, embodiment, developmental constraints, reachability, attractor landscapes