Predictive Regulation in Affective and Adaptive Behaviour

In this chapter, different notions of allostasis (the process of achieving stability through change) as they apply to adaptive behavior are presented. The authors discuss how notions of allostasis can be usefully applied to Cybernetics-based homeostatic systems. Particular emphasis is placed upon affective states – motivational and emotional – and, above all, the notion of ‘predictive' regulation, as distinct from forms of ‘reactive' regulation, in homeostatic systems. The authors focus here on Ashby's ultrastability concept that entails behavior change for correcting homeostatic errors (deviations from the healthy range of essential, physiological, variables). The authors consider how the ultrastability concept can be broadened to incorporate allostatic mechanisms and how they may enhance adaptive physiological and behavioral activity. Finally, this chapter references different Cybernetics frameworks that incorporate the notion of allostasis. The article then attempts to untangle how the given perspectives fit into the ‘allostatic ultrastable systems' framework postulated.