Reframing criminal complicity through Metaqualia Theory with a structural model of responsibility

Abstract This paper proposes a structural reframing of criminal complicity through the lens of Metaqualia Theory (MTQ), a cognitive model of subjective agency originally developed to analyze internal modes of action. Drawing from the theoretically sophisticated yet underrecognized doctrines of Japanese criminal law, particularly its treatment of seihan ishi (principal intent) and kyōbō kyōdō seihan (conspiracy-based joint liability), the paper argues that complicity should not be reduced to observable acts or explicit agreements. Instead, the paper introduces a structural framework based on the interplay between Metaqualia (M)—the self-referential mode by which an agent adopts an action as “their own”—and Field (F)—the intersubjective context in which action becomes viable. Using this M–F model, the paper reclassifies five major types of complicity and introduces the concept of Resonant Metaqualia (Resonant M) to explain ambiguous or tacit forms of participation. A Japanese Supreme Court decision from 2018 is analyzed to demonstrate how criminal responsibility can emerge from mutual resonance, even in the absence of explicit coordination. The paper then applies this structural framework to sentencing decisions, offering a matrix for assessing degrees of involvement. The proposed model provides a new theoretical foundation for criminal responsibility—one that captures the graded, often invisible structures by which individuals become entangled in collective action. It also offers practical applications for judicial reasoning, legal defense, and preventive ethics.