Triadic Framework Research Articles

Researching monumental spaces in late prehistoric societies: New perspectives for landscape research in the Russian Altai

In this article we present a preliminary study discussing new perspectives for future research and interpretation of the Bronze and Iron Age monuments and monumental landscapes in terms of their social dynamic in these early complex societies. Archaeological landscape research in the last decades is characterized by a significant paradigmatic separation, resulting in often one-dimensional treatments of landscapes. Using certain concepts developed by Henri Lefebvre and Martina Löw, we address social landscape as a three-dimensional social space, which enabled us to integrate multiple approaches. This triadic framework is discussed using a case study which focuses on data of the Karakol and Yustyd valley in the Russian Altai. Our study shows that the general transitions in the use and structure of monuments during the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age can be variously interpreted. These interpretations are not necessarily exclusive but may each reflect a partial rendition of the triadic model of social space, or monumental space.

Towards a Triadic Quality Measurement Framework for U.S. Healthcare

ABSTRACTAlthough there are various measures of healthcare quality, such as those used by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), an inclusive perspective that considers the patient, the hospital's external and internal relationships, and the nodal organizations is missing. Medical practitioner comments from the authors' interactions, coupled with the findings from their literature review, have motivated the authors to suggest that healthcare quality should be measured using a triadic approach. In this study, the authors offer an overarching conceptual framework for measuring quality in the U.S. healthcare system that utilizes a triadic approach integrating various aspects of quality at three different levels of measurement. At the micro-level, the focus is on patients–admitted and treated–and their perceptions of a hospital's service as well as outcomes. The authors suggest measures related to the healthcare teamwork quality at the meso-level. At the macro- level, in which the organization interacts with external entities, the focus is on the measurement of hospital quality performance. The authors conclude with the managerial implications of the framework and suggest future directions for triadic healthcare quality measurement.

A triadic framework for collaborative consumption (CC): Motives, activities and resources & capabilities of actors

Collaborative consumption (CC) is an increasingly prevalent form of exchange. CC occurs within a triangle of actors: a platform provider (e.g., Uber), a peer service provider (e.g., an Uber driver) and a customer. The platform provider's main role is matchmaking, so that a customer can access assets of a peer service provider. This paper has three objectives. First, this article identifies three criteria to delineate CC from related constructs such as access-based consumption, sharing or renting. Second, it introduces a literature-based framework explicating the roles of the actors in the CC triangle along three dimensions: motives, activities and resources and capabilities. Third, it highlights areas for further research, such as the dynamics of CC, context-dependent motives and the emergence of professional (peer) service providers.

Assessing Staff Satisfaction with Indoor Environmental Quality in Assisted Living Facilities

This study contributed to knowledge of indoor environmental quality (IEQ) in assisted living facilities (ALFs) by examining staff satisfaction with the work environment, perceived productivity, and attitudes toward environmental sustainability in the workplace. An ALF Staff IEQ Survey was administered to staff ( N = 94) at 12 ALFs, which were newly constructed or renovated within the last 10 years. Staff who participated in the survey were divided into three age groups (young, middle–aged, and older) and two categories of responsibilities (medical and nonmedical). The questionnaire was designed to incorporate the Occupant IEQ Survey (Center for the Built Environment, 2013) and the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating criteria. It comprised six IEQ categories: space layout, thermal comfort, air quality, lighting and views, acoustic quality, and facility cleanliness and maintenance. Spearman's rank–order correlation coefficient, Kruskal–Wallis, and Mann–Whitney U tests were used for data analysis. Results identified 23 IEQ factors in all IEQ categories that significantly contributed to staff productivity. Six IEQ factors in four IEQ categories (space layout, thermal comfort, lighting, and facility cleanliness) were significantly related to staff environmental attitudes. In addition, 12 IEQ factors within five IEQ categories (except lighting quality) were found to have notable differences by age discrepancy, whereas five IEQ factors of air quality and facility cleanliness were significantly different for medical and nonmedical staff. The findings of this study provide designers with prioritized demands and preferences for decision making in terms of improving the work environment for the health and well–being of ALF staff. By incorporating the paradigms of evidence–based design (EBD), human–centered design (HCD), and sustainable design (SD), this study proposes a new triadic framework to transition from the current resident–centered model in elder care to a multistakeholder–focused model.

An institutional perspective of “Glocalization” in two Asian tigers: The “Structure−Agent−Strategy” of building an age-friendly city

This paper expands the focal point of glocalization to the non-western context, and revisits glocalization in light of the promulgation of an international policy regime. Particularly it examines how the politics of scale in various contexts assists local pragmatic exercises and institutional organizations in building up an age-friendly city (AFC). The functioning mechanisms of glocalization are conceptualized through a triadic framework incorporating structure (mode of local governance), agents, and strategies. The empirical cases examine how AFC has been promoted in Chiayi City of Taiwan and in Hong Kong, the former two Tiger economies. Drawing on a comparative analysis of the two cases, the paper presents three major findings. Firstly, local policy networks are integral to glocalization in that they govern how different resources (i.e., political commitment, professional knowledge, human resources, communication skills, and financial resources) are synthesized under a local institutional framework. Often local policy networks reveal the fragmentation of resources provided by different stakeholders. Secondly, the case study illustrates two different modes of local governance. The Chiayi case reflects an institutionalized governing framework with both hierarchical coordination between levels of state bureaucracies and the horizontal exchange of information and resources between the state and non-state sectors. Hong Kong reflects a grassroots mode whereby the promotion and implementation of AFC initiatives are prompted among NGOs, charities, district councils, and universities. Both modes reveal pros and cons. Thirdly, academic associations have played a major role in promoting AFC, though the extent to which their advice can shape policy decisions relies much on the discretion and political commitment of district councils.

Performance-based contracting in the defence industry: Exploring triadic dynamics between government, OEMs and suppliers

This study takes a rare longitudinal perspective to examine performance-based contracting (PBC) in the context of the development of a major capital defence project. It employs a triadic framework to examine changes in actors and their roles over time in fulfilling the project. The triads involve both contractors as suppliers and government entities. More specifically, using a historical narrative method the study suggests that over the 30year span of the new warship's development, different parties occupy the nodes of triads where the roles or functions of the principal and agents in the contract change over time. Our use of a triadic perspective enables us to trace both the withdrawal of the government customer from a position of authority and the specific strategy of one supplier to occupy the vacated role as systems integrator. The study makes three distinct contributions: firstly, to our understanding of PBC through tracing the development of the conditions that enable PBC in largescale long-term public-private contracting such as clear role delineation. Second, it adds to understanding of principal-agent behaviour in triadic public-private projects, suggesting that customer and supplier roles need to be perceived as supply network dynamics. Third, it suggests reasons why this defence acquisition underperformed, focusing on the mediation of the customer's value requirement through powerful players seeking to extend their control. We argue PBC must be re-assessed in complex environments to include less direct financial measures such as long-term market share and adopt a more nuanced approach to contractual management than simply transferring risk.

The Impact of Task Complexity along Single Task Dimension on EFL Iranian Learners' Written Production: Lexical complexity

Based on Robinson’s Cognition Hypothesis, this study explored the effects of task complexity on the lexical complexity of Iranian EFL students’ argumentative writing.This study was designed to explore the manipulation of cognitive task complexity along +/-single task dimension (a resource dispersing dimension in Robinson’s triadic framework) on Iranian EFL learners’ production in term of lexical complexity. To this end, based on the results of the writing test of TOFEL (2004), 48 learners were selected and assigned to two groups, simple task group (STG, n = 24) and complex task group (CTG, n= 24) randomly. The participants in the STG were given an eight-frame picture which had been arranged in the correct sequence before its administration (+single task). These participants were required to order the frames in the right sequence first, before starting writing (- single task). Their output was encoded based on the measures of lexical complexity. The null hypothesis was nullified since the results indicated positive significant impact of +/-single dimension on lexical complexity. Regarding the results of the present study, it can be stated that when the participants were engaged putting the pictures in their correct order in the complex task, they carried out deeper semantic processing in order to find the reasonable order, which might lead to the better activation of their exemplar-based system and made them browse it more deeply. It was found that, at least in the Iranian context, Robinson’s (2005) predictions were more convincing.

The Impact of Task Complexity along Single Task Dimension on Iranian EFL Learners' Writing Production

This study was designed to explore the manipulation of cognitive task complexity along +/- single task dimension (a resource dispersing dimension in Robinson’s triadic framework) on the Iranian EFL learners’ writing production in terms of accuracy, fluency, lexical complexity, and syntactic complexity, and put two different views (Skehan’s [1998] limited attentional capacity model and Robinson’s [2005] cognition hypothesis) into test in the Iranian context. Based on the results of the writing test of TOFEL (2004), 48 learners were selected and assigned into two groups, simple task group (STG, n=24) and complex task group (CTG, n=24). The participants in the STG were given an eight-frame picture arranged in the correct sequence (+ single task). The participants in the CTG were given all the eight frames in scrambled order. These participants were required to order the frames in the right sequence first (- single task). Four independent sample t-tests were run. The results indicated that the participants’ output in the complex task were significantly more fluent, more lexically and structurally complex. However, their performance on the accuracy measure decreased in the complex task. Based on the findings, at least in the Iranian context, Skehan’s (1998) predictions are more convincing.

Comparing the Meanings of Food in Different Chinese Societies: The Cases of Taiwan and Malaysia

Existing literature sheds little light on how Chinese consumers in any two societies perceive and consume food. In this study, the food perceptions of Taiwanese and Malaysian Chinese consumers are compared using a projective technique. Using images collected by respondents, both conscious and tacit interpretations of food were obtained. Findings reveal that Taiwanese and Malaysian Chinese share similar, but not identical, food perceptions. In this study, food is interpreted from a triadic framework: utilitarian (health, sustenance); hedonic (freedom, happiness, excitement, enjoyment, knowledge acquisition, love); and symbolic (sharing, warm relationships with others). Based on the emerged findings, the theoretical contributions of the study are highlighted, a number of managerial implications are proposed, and future research opportunities are recommended.

Triadic analysis of affiliation networks

AbstractTriadic closure has been conceptualized and measured in a variety of ways, most famously the clustering coefficient. Existing extensions to affiliation networks, however, are sensitive to repeat group attendance, which does not reflect common interpersonal interpretations of triadic closure. This paper proposes a measure of triadic closure in affiliation networks designed to control for this factor, which manifests in bipartite models as biclique proliferation. To avoid arbitrariness, the paper introduces a triadic framework for affiliation networks, within which a range of measures can be defined; it then presents a set of basic axioms that suffice to narrow this range to the one measure. An instrumental assessment compares the proposed and two existing measures for reliability, validity, redundancy, and practicality. All three measures then take part in an investigation of three empirical social networks, which illustrates their differences.

The homeostasis solution – Mechanical homeostasis in architecturally homeostatic buildings

We already know, for energy-saving potential, the necessary architectural features in well-designed buildings: high performance building envelope, sufficient interior thermal mass, and hydronic-network activated radiant surfaces for cooling and heating. Buildings with these features may be referred to as architecturally homeostatic buildings (AHBs); such a building-system is thermally semi-autonomous in the sense that its temperature variation stays within a certain range even without conditioning equipment, and, with conditioning equipment in operation, its thermal regulation is handled by its hydronic heat-distribution-network for controlling the temperature level of the building. At the present time conventional HVAC equipment is used for maintaining the heat-distribution-network: this arrangement, however, has resulted in great energy saving only for AHBs with accessible natural water bodies. In operation of general AHBs, a case is made here for a new kind of mechanical equipment having the attribute of mechanical homeostasis (MH). MH is a new energy transformation concept in a triadic framework. Superlative energy efficiency is predicted as a result of combined improvements in higher triadCOPs and lower total (inducted+removed) heat rates—evincing existence of synergy in architectural and mechanical homeostasis, which together will be referred to as the homeostasis solution.

Antecedents and Consequences of Export Intermediaries’ Customer Orientation: Conceptualization and Propositional Development

Export Intermediaries involve transactions with exporters and importers, both of which are these intermediaries’ customers. Therefore, dyadic perspectives implicit in conventional theories of customer orientation should be revised to apply to a triadic relationship framework in indirect export contexts. The present manuscript proposes that an export intermediary’s customer orientation consists of summated customer orientation (customer orientation toward both the exporter and importer sides) and asymmetrical customer orientation (customer orientation in favor of the exporter relative to the importer side), and examines the antecedents and outcomes of these orientations. It is posited that importer- (exporter-) side concentration increases summated customer orientation and asymmetrical customer orientation toward exporters (importers). It is also posited that these positive effects are weaker when importers and exporters interact directly versus indirectly and are stronger when the offering prices vary versus remaining stable during negotiations. Finally, it is posited that summated customer orientation increases export intermediaries’ performance by itself and in conjunction with customer concentration, but asymmetrical orientation enhances their performance only interaction with customer concentration.

Consumer transformation through volunteer service experiences

A growing number of consumers are seeking to make a difference through experiences involving interaction and collaboration with organizations that offer charitable service opportunities. These experiences are noteworthy in not only their catalyzing influence on the organization and the beneficiary customer, but also the personal transformation in the volunteer. The authors introduce a phenomenon called transformative charity experiences (TCEs), a triadic framework highlighting an avenue of personal consumer well-being through the transformative effect of service interactions with key stakeholders. Building upon conceptual models proposed in Transformative Services Research and insights from their own embedded charity experiences, the authors introduce how service co-creation from three entities (charity, volunteer, and community) can lead to a transformative effect for the volunteer. An exploratory field study in an international setting provides insights into how the proposed framework accounts for TCEs. Implications and future directions for charitable services research are presented.

The Myth and Reality of “Return” — Diaspora in the “Homeland”

The contemporary Armenian diaspora is spread throughout the world, with its core composed of descendants of the survivors of the atrocities carried out by the Turkish authorities during the decline of the Ottoman Empire (1881-1922). The majority of this established diaspora hails from what was once western Armenia and is now eastern Turkey, in contrast to the newest wave of Armenian economic migrants, who come from portions of eastern historical Armenia ruled by the czarist and then Soviet empires and who left following the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. Unlike the new migrants, the older diasporans have to negotiate the gap between a mythical homeland and an actual “step-homeland” in the shape of the present Republic of Armenia. This background goes some way to explain why there was been very little “return” migration to Armenia by diasporans. Nonetheless, a very small number of diasporans have actually taken up the option of “return” in the sense of relocating to Armenia. I have termed this trend a particular kind of “sojourning,” located in the conceptual space in between migrant and visitor. The concept of sojourn reflects the increased mobility and flexibility of both the theory and practice of diaspora, challenging the traditional triadic framework of homeland diaspora-host state through which diasporas have been approached. This article plots the evolving and complex relationship of diaspora and “homeland” on the ground, specifically through the experiences of diasporans who have made the move to live in Armenia for varying periods of time. It analyzes and articulates the experiences of these individuals and views them as a counter-community that re-imagines and expands the “homeland” while embodying the transnational. This movement represents identity shaping from below, which does not subvert state categories of belonging (and in fact can reinforce them) but transgresses and expands the boundaries of these categories in practice and in the imagining of the “transnation.”

Franchise nations: A framework for analysing the roles new media play in Chinese provisional business migration to Australia

Abstract The objective of this article is to flesh out the theoretical framework of franchise nation first broached in 2009 as a means of understanding the three intersecting relationships between home nation and diaspora, host nation and diaspora, and home and host nations that surround the migrant condition. The term franchise nation seeks to encapsulate and critique the idea that the core elements of a nation’s culture can, like all franchises products and services, be replicated to order. I contend such a framework to be necessary because current approaches tend to emphasize certain aspects of migration dynamics at the expense of others. In what follows, I explain why this is so and what the franchise nation frameworks add to the analysis of Chinese migration that would otherwise be absent. Instead of dyadic understandings of the relationship between diaspora and nations that explain diasporic connectivity variously as long-distance nationalism, state-led transnationalism or domestic abroad transnationalism, the franchise nation framework is premised on a triadic relationship between diaspora, home and host nation. Starting with the example of Mainland Chinese provisional business migrants (PBMs), the article explains what the franchise nation framework brings to the investigation of the ways in which their everyday connections via Chinese social media inflect their experience of multiple belongings in Australia. The three arms of franchise nation triad in this instance consist of: the business migration policy that connects the Chinese PBMs to Australia; the diaspora engagement strategies with which China reaches out to the Chinese PBM diaspora; and the soft power policy that China employs in its dealings with other nations like Australia. The aim here is to argue for a change in how the study of migration is approached, shifting from a dyadic to a triadic framework.

Spanish instructors’ operationalisation of task complexity and task sequencing in foreign language lessons

A main goal of research on task-based/supported language teaching is to inform foreign/second language classroom practices. However, while literature abounds detailing how tasks can be sequenced to maximise learners’ cognitive engagement and language development in experimental contexts, little is known about how instructors interpret and incorporate this research into their classroom practices. The current study contributes to this research need by examining how university-level Spanish FL instructors operationalise task complexity and determine task sequencing in a lesson following training on the Triadic Componential Framework and SSARC model, and how instructors interpret the outcomes of their task sequence. Eight graduate student instructors of FL Spanish in a task-supported language department participated in the study, which took place over a year. In the fall semester, instructors took a FL teaching methods class, which included a unit in which they designed a two-task sequence of increasing complexity. The following spring, the instructors implemented their task sequence in a lesson, were interviewed afterwards and completed an electronic questionnaire. Results demonstrate that graduate student instructors utilised the research presented in training when operationalising cognitive complexity and determining task sequencing. These instructors also focused on task outcomes relating to the requirements of their highly structured teaching context (e.g. the linguistic outcome of the task) rather than communicative, real-world task demands.

The Blindness of Focusing. Pragmatic theories of communication and the challenge of validation

In this theoretical article it is argued that certain pragmatic approaches to language and communication are necessary to take into consideration when validating cultural, immanent 'objects' or cultural utterances. It is claimed that he very act of attention creates, as a direct co-effect, a problematic context. Hence, handling context is seen as crucial to validation as a process. So-called triadic theories of communication combine the three key aspects syntax, semantics, and pragmatics. It is argued that such theories offer perspectives and tools for analysing the dynamics of text and context, utterance and genre in different semiotic modes and channels. In the first part the concept of validity is discussed. Further some triadic theories are presented. Texts of Bakhtin and of Habermas on relations between a communicative (triadic) perspective and kinds of validities are discussed. A framework (a 'model') that integrates several of the discussed perspectives is then outlined and is used to clarify the concept of positioning. This concept is coined to enable combinations of more categorial (aspect dependent) and relational research designs. It is asked: Validating and/as positioning(s)? A brief example is given (just) to illustrate implications of a triadic perspective when working with validity. In the next main section some challenges, implications, and dilemmas are touched upon. The article ends suggesting that a double triadic framework of positioning has the potential to theorise validity claims connected to veracity, truth and normativity as well as critiquing possible weaknesses. By not just focusing figure (text or utterance), but even theorising ground (context or genre) and how the two relate, blindness might be reduced and validity increased.

Some challenges for the triadic model for the study of adolescent motivated behavior

Within this special issue, Ernst has provided a comprehensive overview of the triadic neural systems model and its explanatory power for the conceptualization of adolescent development. Within this commentary, we encourage further consideration of several issues as this valuable model is expanded and articulated. These issues include the extent of functional distinctions among the three proposed neural nodes that comprise the triadic framework, the proposed dichotomy between motivation and emotion as linked to approach versus avoidance, the extent to which approach and avoidance can be dissociated on behavioral and neural levels during adolescent development, and how individual difference factors mechanistically interact with broader age-based developmental trends.

Perceived Co-Ethnicss and Kin-State Citizenship in Southeastern Europe

The paper analyses the often neglected ‘perceived co-ethnics’ in the analysis of citizenship policies. The paper argues this is an interstitial category that further complicates the triadic nexus between national minorities, nationalizing states and kin-states. Apart from bringing the perceived co-ethnics issue into the focus, the paper elucidates citizenship policies affecting groups that challenge the exact fit between ethnicity and nation; showing how national governments through particular citizenship policies and categorisation practices engage in construction of groups. The paper shows that the triadic nexus framework which has had a strong influence on citizenship and minorities scholarship needs to be revised in some aspects and include unidirectional relations between the elements of the triadic nexus. The paper is based on the comparison between the cases of ethnic Vlachs and Bunjevci in the context Albania, Croatia, Greece and Serbia.

Reciprocal Positive Affect and Well-Regulated, Adjusted Children: A Unique Contribution of Fathers

SYNOPSIS Objective. The study investigated real-time, sequential exchanges of affect in both mother–child and father–child dyads within a triadic framework. Child emotion dysregulation was examined as a mechanism by which parent–child reciprocal positive and negative affect are associated with child psychopathology symptoms. Design. Fifty-one mother–father–child (aged 7–12 years) triads participated in an emotion discussion task, and behavioral observations were coded for negative and positive affect. Parents completed measures of child psychopathology symptoms and emotion regulation skills. Results. Although mothers exhibited greater levels of positive emotional reciprocity than fathers, father–child reciprocal positive affect was uniquely associated with child symptoms of psychopathology. Child emotion dysregulation mediated the relation between paternal reciprocal positive affect and child symptoms; mediational models did not hold for mothers. Conclusions. Fathers play a unique role in boys’ and girls’ development of symptoms of psychopathology through child emotion dysregulation.