Process Ontologies and the Challenges of Post-Normality: Relational Materialism in the Philosophy of Science

Abstract

Introduction. The insufficient explication of the philosophical and ontological prerequisites of the methodology of postnormal science (PNN) is considered. Traditional projective epistemology, which operates with the figure of a distant observer and an independent reality, loses its explanatory potential in situations of empirical uncertainty and conflict of value orientations. The ontological turn in modern continental philosophy offers conceptual resources for overcoming subject-object dualism, but the systematic correlation of these models with the imperatives of reflexive cognition remains fragmentary. The scientific problem lies in the lack of an integrative framework linking procedural ontologies with the requirements of postnormal research practice. Content. A comparative analysis of the ontological concepts of J. Deleuze, M. Deland, B. Latour, K. Meillassoux, G. Harman and A. Toscano is carried out in the context of the methodological challenges of PNN. The structural compatibility of the basic assumptions of these thinkers with the conditions of actual uncertainty and the disputability of normative grounds is established. The points of conceptual convergence are identified: the rejection of the projective model of cognition, the decentralization of anthropocentrism, the priority of processality over substantial statics, the formation of non-projective epistemological strategies. The concepts of the plane of immanence, the theory of assemblage, actor-network analytics, modes of existence, object withdrawal and individuation are considered as operational tools. These approaches transform the researcher's status from an external registrar to an internal participant in the configuration. Conclusions. It is stated that ontological models that emphasize relational and configurational dynamics provide a conceptually adequate basis for PNN in comparison with traditional subject-centered paradigms. The integration of the considered approaches forms a methodological framework that translates epistemic responsibility from an external norm into a constituent element of the scientific method. The hypothesis is confirmed: procedural ontologies allow us to understand the researcher as an immanent participant in the system, and knowledge as a result of co-construction. The theoretical significance of the work lies in bridging the gap between abstract metaphysics and applied methodology. The prospects for further research are related to the development of procedures for the operationalization of philosophical categories in practice.