Psychoeducation Tensor Framework as a Cognitive Architecture for the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) Framework

A psychoeducation tensor (PET) framework for global cognition was developed to serve as the core cognitive architecture for the National Institute of Mental Health’s (NIMH) Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) nosology framework. The PET includes sixteen functional cognitive elementary modules (EM) that are arranged in 4x4 tensor formation. The purpose of this article is to introduce the foundational cognitive processes that describe the PET framework in neuroscientific terms. The PET framework was further designed as a clinical psychoeducational tool for reducing psychological distress and mental perplexity. For example, the PET is optimized for learning within the 4-chunk constraints of working memory and may be optimally aligned to function as a science-based prosthetic internal working model to assist in reinforcing secure social attachments. Clinical conditions associated with the DSM-5 TR are described using non-deficit language to minimize use of stigmatizing language and constructs. The PET framework is contextualized in a broader physics framework with an analogue quantum description of cognition. The PET is a Minimalist program inspired by Chomsky’s (1992) linguistic program and Boyle et al.’s (2018) Minimalist model of physics. The PET framework expands from Smallwood & Schooler’s (2014) four-quadrant model (2x2) of mind wandering assimilating numerous theoretical models based on cognitive and clinical psychology.