---
title: Perceive–Reason–Act Loop
type: concept
tags: [apm, agent, control-loop, architecture]
sources: ["[[sources/2026-calvanese-agentic-bpm-manifesto]]"]
created: 2026-04-13
updated: 2026-04-13
---

# Perceive–Reason–Act

The micro-level control loop that every agent in an [[concepts/agentic-bpm|APM system]] runs ([[sources/2026-calvanese-agentic-bpm-manifesto]], §2.2.2). An agent alternates between:

- **Sensing** its environment to update its internal state
- **Reasoning** to select actions aligned with its goals
- **Acting** to influence the environment

## Three conceptual modules

### Perception module
Observes the state of the environment, context (situational constraints, location), and other agents. Manages sensors, percepts, and belief update functions. Keeps the agent's world model current.

### Reasoning module
Core of knowledge representation and decision-making. Continuously informed by the framing mechanism; maintains:
- **Mental model** — the agent's knowledge, perceptions, beliefs, including its view of "the process" as perceived through the frame.
- **Intentional model** — the agent's goals as shaped by social and normative dispositions (obligations, roles, collective goals, prohibitions).
- **Identity** (agent ID, type).
- **Behavioural dispositions and plans** (policies, triggers, reactions).

LLMs are explored as implementations, though their sufficiency is disputed (see refs [41][42] in source).

The reasoning module houses the four APM capabilities: [[concepts/framed-autonomy|framing]], [[concepts/explainability-apm|explainability]], [[concepts/conversational-actionability|conversational actionability]], [[concepts/self-modification|self-modification]].

### Action module
Performs actions that change environment state and sends messages to other agents. Defines the agent's *capabilities* (skills, resources) and ability to socially interact.

## Theoretical foundations
Draws on foundational ontologies — **[[frameworks/dolce-gfo|DOLCE, GFO]]**; agent-oriented modelling — **[[frameworks/tropos-i-star|i*, Tropos]]**; classical AI constructs — **[[frameworks/bdi-agents|BDI]]**, **[[frameworks/fipa|FIPA]]**; mental-model theory of reasoning.

## Related
[[concepts/agentic-bpm]] · [[concepts/framed-autonomy]] · [[concepts/process-awareness]]