General stochastic dynamics, developed in a framework of Feynman path
integrals, have been applied to Lewinian field--theoretic psychodynamics,
resulting in the development of a new concept of life--space foam (LSF) as a
natural medium for motivational and cognitive psychodynamics. According to LSF
formalisms, the classic Lewinian life space can be macroscopically represented
as a smooth manifold with steady force-fields and behavioral paths, while at
the microscopic level it is more realistically represented as a collection of
wildly fluctuating force-fields, (loco)motion paths and local geometries (and
topologies with holes). A set of least-action principles is used to model the
smoothness of global, macro-level LSF paths, fields and geometry. To model the
corresponding local, micro-level LSF structures, an adaptive path integral is
used, defining a multi-phase and multi-path (multi-field and multi-geometry)
transition process from intention to goal-driven action. Application examples
of this new approach include (but are not limited to) information processing,
motivational fatigue, learning, memory and decision-making.Comment: 25 pages, 2 figures, elsar