Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019 Jul 31:6:1798-1811.
doi: 10.1016/j.mex.2019.07.025. eCollection 2019.

The Actor in 4 dimensions: A relevant methodology to analyze local environmental governance and inform Ostrom's social-ecological systems framework

Raphaëlle Dancette  1 , Léa Sebastien  2
Affiliations

The Actor in 4 dimensions: A relevant methodology to analyze local environmental governance and inform Ostrom's social-ecological systems framework

Raphaëlle Dancette et al. MethodsX. .

Abstract

This paper presents the Actor in 4 dimensions (A4D) model as a complementary tool to the Social-ecological systems framework (SESF) in order to better integrate individual and groups' representations into local environmental governance analysis. As the A4D is based on actors' representations of their social-ecological system (SES) and of its governance, it mainly informs the Actors subsystem of the SESF, even if it can also give useful insights for other framework's sub-systems. We define the SESF actor's sub-tiers and the corresponding A4D indicators and highlight the complementarity between both approaches in order to operationalize the SESF. This parallel is exemplified by the case of Maio island (a small-scale fishing community in Cape Verde). Our comparison also highlights other assets of the A4D methodology for the advancement of environmental governance's study. •The A4D allows actors' participation and discussion on the SES and analyses common and divergent discourses and values between actors.•The A4D points to power relations by integrating strong, weak and absent actors in its analysis.•By highlighting subjective and reflexive elements, the A4D complements the SESF in their common attempt to analyze SES.

Keywords: Actor in 4 dimensions (A4D); Actors; Environmental governance; Participation; Perceptions; Social-ecological systems framework; The Actor in 4 dimensions and its territorial footprint.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

None
Graphical abstract
Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Social-ecological framework (as updated in [9] with the most recent set of variables included into the SESF [10].
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Explanations of social and environmental profiles (taken from [14]).
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
A4D territorial footprint of a local fisherman in Maio, Cape Verde.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Fishermen’s group territorial footprint (1.1.1–4.2.4), with equivalent SESF Actors sub-tiers’ indicators (A1–A8).
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Comparison of grouped footprints (12 local fishermen to the left - A) and individual footprint (spearfisher/diver - buzio fisherman - on the right - B).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Bennett N. Using perceptions as evidence to improve conservation and environmental management. Conserv. Biol. 2016;30(3):582–592. - PubMed
    1. Andrachuk M., Armitage D. Understanding social-ecological change and transformation through community perceptions of system identity. Ecol. Soc. 2015;20(4):26.
    1. Cookey P.E., Darnswasdi R., Ratanachai C. Local people’s perceptions of Lake Basin water governance performance in Thailand. Ocean Coast. Manag. 2016;120:11–28.
    1. DeCaro D.A., Stokes M.K. Public participation and institutional fit: a social-psychological perspective. Ecol. Soc. 2013;18(4):40.
    1. Hunt L.M., Sutton S.G., Arlinghaus R. Illustrating the critical role of human dimensions research for understanding and managing recreational fisheries within a social-ecological system framework. Fish. Manag. Ecol. 2013;20:111–124.