| Propagation | Transmission of an existing state variable across space, structure, or time without changing its semantic type. | Continuity of influence. | Sequential chaining of mechanism executions. | State variables persist in kind while changing location, magnitude, or activation context. | Becomes composite if the state is converted, filtered, accumulated, or looped. |
| Transformation | Conversion of one state representation into another, altering the semantic type of the state. | State conversion. | Ordered execution producing a defined input–output mapping. | State variables change type, role, or representational form. | Becomes composite if no genuine conversion occurs or if elimination or feedback dominates. |
| Selection | Reduction of a state space through constraint-based elimination or retention. | Constraint satisfaction. | Branching followed by pruning of admissible states or paths. | State space contracts while remaining states persist unchanged. | Becomes composite if surviving states are transformed rather than merely filtered. |
| Iteration | Repeated application of a mechanism under stable rules. | Repetition under fixed criteria. | Recursive or cyclic execution of the same mechanism. | State variables update incrementally across repetitions. | Becomes composite if iteration alters governing rules or introduces feedback control. |
| Feedback | Causal dependence where later state values influence earlier stages of the same pathway. | Self-referential regulation. | Closed-loop arrangement linking outputs back to inputs. | State variables regulate, amplify, or dampen prior values. | Becomes composite if feedback is broken or if the loop no longer influences earlier stages. |
| Assembly | Construction of higher-order structure from multiple lower-order components. | Structural accumulation. | Convergent arrangement combining multiple mechanism executions. | State variables increase in organization, hierarchy, or relational complexity. | Becomes composite if structure is no longer being built or if decomposition dominates. |
| Regime Transition | Reorganization of the admissible state space or governing dynamics. | Threshold-driven redefinition. | Mechanism execution that alters the active rules, constraints, or attractors. | State variables cross into a qualitatively different regime. | Becomes composite once the new regime stabilizes and other archetypes govern evolution. |