Theory of Living Organization: Organizational Continuity, Distributed Support, and the Conditions of Adaptive Freedom

This preprint introduces the Theory of Living Organization (TLO), a general conceptual framework examining how living systems maintain organizational continuity through dynamically distributed support, regulation, and adaptation. It proposes that adaptive arrangements may become organizationally entrenched, limiting access to alternative viable configurations. The framework develops the concepts of organizational lock-in, transition conditions, and adaptive freedom, and outlines empirical propositions across biological and biomechanical domains. TLO is presented as a theoretical synthesis and research program rather than an empirically established unified theory.