Constraint Collapse

Part of the Reality Drift framework (2023–2026) by A. Jacobs.

Canonical Definition

Constraint Collapse is a systemic condition in which institutions, technologies, or symbolic systems lose the mechanisms that once forced their representations to remain aligned with real-world consequences.

Processes continue, metrics update, and explanations remain coherent, but the corrective pressures that once produced adjustment weaken or disappear.

Relationship to Reality Drift

Within the Reality Drift framework, Constraint Collapse describes the structural failure mode in which systems lose their ability to invalidate incorrect representations.

Systems remain operational, but errors no longer reliably trigger correction, allowing drift to accumulate over time.

Main Framework Repository

Full framework library:

Reality Drift Library on GitHub