Logic of Scientific Readiness: Constraints, Conflicts, and Pathways of Transformation

Existing models of scientific maturity and readiness help position research systems on a developmental scale, but they often remain descriptive and provide limited insight into the structural causes of stagnation and uneven advancement. This study proposes the TOC-SRL integrative model, combining the logical trees of the Theory of Constraints (TOC) with the level-based framework of Scientific Readiness Levels (SRL). The study is based on the conceptual adaptation of five TOC trees-the Current Reality Tree, Conflict Cloud, Future Reality Tree, Prerequisite Tree, and Transition Tree-to the logic of SRL. The analysis relies on conceptual reconstruction, documentary analysis, and case-based interpretation, using material from Kazakhstan’s national science system and the digital transformation of science and higher education. The TOC-SRL model makes it possible to move from descriptive accounts of science policy to a more systemic analysis of constraints, institutional conflicts, maturity conditions, and transition pathways within research ecosystems. The findings suggest that scientific readiness can be interpreted not only as a position on a scale, but also as a causally structured condition shaped by deeper institutional and developmental limitations. The proposed approach extends SRL from a static maturity scale into a dynamic framework for causal diagnosis and transformation-oriented analysis. It offers a structured way to connect readiness assessment with the identification of constraints, conflict resolution, and developmental sequencing in scientific systems.