Cross-Level Dynamics

To adequately characterize partnerships, we need to view them as cross-level phenomena (i.e. involving partners from different geographical or jurisdictional levels) because agreements that make sense at one level do not necessarily translate to levels above or below the original one. Scale of organizing refers to the spatial or temporal dimensions of a partnership and plays an important role in shaping how issue fields are defined. When partners frame issues at different scale, this can pose difficulties for partnership formation, representation, and design and also for evaluating outcomes. Several examples illustrate how scale differences add complexity and may create tradeoffs among desired partnership outcomes. The chapter distinguishes between the physical setting (space) and place (which has meanings, symbols, memories, narratives, norms, and power relations attached). Level of analysis (micro, meso, macro) is also important for studying partnerships and understanding how they change institutional fields.

Cartography · Dynamics (music) · Economic system · Economics · Frame (networking) · General partnership · Geography · Macro level · Narrative · Political science · Politics · Power (physics) · Representation (politics) · Scale (ratio) · Sociology · Space (punctuation) · Computer Science · Global and Cross-Cultural Management