Observation, Indeterminacy, and Discontinuous Explanation: A Quantum-Continuity Model for the Philosophy of Social Science

The philosophy of social science faces a persistent explanatory gap in reflexive systems: when modeling alters what is being modeled, predictive frameworks become unstable at the moments they are most needed. Complexity theory and reflexivity each address part of this problem—nonlinearity, feedback, recursive expectation—but neither specifies how structured indeterminacy resolves into realized social outcomes. This article proposes Potentialism and the Quantum-Continuity Model (QCM) as a candidate epistemological framework. Rather than claiming social systems are literally quantum, QCM deploys the structure of superposition, collapse, and the observer effect analogically, generating three concepts: Transition Zones, Quantum Thresholds, and Quantum Measurement Events. The framework engages with complexity theory, critical realism, and post-positivist approaches to social inquiry. The Arab Spring serves as illustration, with extensions to the 2008 financial crisis and #MeToo. QCM offers a vocabulary for explaining discontinuous social resolution, reorienting inquiry from prediction toward the navigation of structured indeterminacy.