Meaning from matching: How representational mechanisms exploit structural similarity

Abstract

Representational mechanisms are responsible for processing information to modify readiness for action. While structural similarity has been proposed as foundational to neural representation, how these mechanisms systematically harness correspondence-based information remains undertheorized. This paper introduces a Correspondence Network Framework that elucidates how representational systems exploit multiple channels of structural similarity concurrently. We demonstrate that structural similarity engenders networks of infocorrespondences between informational structures, allowing representational mechanisms to evaluate information across channels, detect inconsistencies, and establish satisfaction conditions for representational content. Our framework extends beyond single-channel accounts by explaining how multiple classification systems can operate simultaneously over the same neural vehicles, enabling content-sensitive processing. To illustrate the framework's utility, we analyze representational similarity analysis (RSA) in cognitive neuroscience as detecting correspondence networks. This analysis reveals why taxonomic organization consistently emerges in neural representational spaces and provides principled responses to anti-representationalist critiques. While RSA alone cannot fully characterize representational mechanisms, the Correspondence Network Framework delineates its interpretive constraints and provides valuable heuristics for further empirical inquiry.