A General Field Theory of Biological Behavior: The ARCH Model from Molecules to Organs

This paper introduces a formal and empirically grounded law of biological behavior across cellular and organ-level systems, based on the ARCH equation: Behavior = Archetype × Drive × Culture. In this model, Archetype represents latent structural templates (e.g., gene regulatory architecture), Drive denotes metabolic energy or readiness for action, and Culture refers to environmental or contextual modulation (e.g., hormonal or extracellular cues). We argue that behavior only emerges when all three components are simultaneously active, and collapses when any is impaired, reflecting a thermodynamic conservation principle. This multiplicative formulation is validated using publicly available datasets involving lipid accumulation, insulin signaling, gluconeogenesis, and apoptosis. In each case, perturbation of a single ARCH element results in sharp behavioral disruption, confirming the irreducibility and conditional necessity of each term. By integrating evolutionary ethology (Tinbergen), systems biology, and thermodynamics, this framework offers a unified explanatory model for biological function. The ARCH model captures the all-or-none gating of complex behavior and represents a step toward a general field theory of life processes.