Abstract: AbstractResearch on the information cocoon has generated extensive academic debates over its objective existence, causes, and effects due to the metaphorical nature of the concept and the complexity of its formation mechanisms, resulting in fragmented research findings, and highlighting the urgent need for systematic theoretical integration and clear methodological guidance. To overcome this bottleneck, this paper introduces Marx's “retrospective reasoning” as the core methodology, advocating an approach that begins with the observable effects of information cocoons and works backward to infer their formation logic. Based on this, the study constructs a multi-dimensional collaborative analysis framework integrating “semantic space” and “topological space” to systematically deconstruct the conceptual connotation of information cocoons and guide empirical quantification and resolution research. The findings reveal that, from the “retrospective reasoning” perspective, information cocoons can be redefined as an information-cognitive coupling system encompassing semantic homogenization, structural agglomeration, and dynamic stability. Their quantification issues can be transformed into semantic distance calculations in semantic space and structural feature analysis in topological space. Strategies for mitigating the information cocoon may focus on the destabilization of dynamics topological structures and the reconnection strategies of heterogeneous information bridging. The innovation of this study lies in transforming the information cocoon concept from a metaphor into an operational analysis model through the method of “retrospective reasoning”, thereby providing a clear theoretical framework and methodological orientation for future research in this field.