The Formative Cognitive Device: A Transformational Perspective on Research Methodology

Articles in Press

Document Type : علمی - پژوهشی

Author

Department of Educational Psychology University of Shiraz, Shiraz, Iran

10.30471/mssh.2025.11064.2649

Abstract

The Formative metatheory posits that an effective research method must align with the cognitive structure of the human mind and the way knowledge is organized within it. If the human mind relies on specific patterns to gather, organize, and process information, then research methods must be developed in accordance with these patterns in order to attain deeper understanding of reality. Grounded in Islamic philosophy—particularly the Transcendent Philosophy (Ḥikmat al-Muta‘āliyah) of Mulla Sadra—this perspective seeks to offer a methodology that enables researchers to engage in scientific discourse within the framework of Islamic thought. In this article, employing a Formative abstraction method with a descriptive–inferential entity-ideagraphy method, the “Formative Cognitive Device” is introduced. This Device offers a topological space for analyzing events, allowing for the representation of the quantitative, qualitative, temporal, spatial, causal, and reciprocal dimensions of phenomena. The article first explicates the foundational principles of the Formative metatheory upon which this system is built. It then introduces the structural features of the proposed coordinate system and, finally, examines its methodological implications for research in the human and social sciences within the framework of Islamic methodology.

Keywords

Methodology of Social Sciences and Humanities

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 23 October 2025

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