In this way, the framework connects interaction logic, transmission pathways, and systemic vulnerability into a practical basis for systemic-risk diagnosis.
Transmission pathways
The orthogonal taxonomy gains diagnostic value when interaction types are linked to transmission pathways across socio-ecological-technical systems. Transmission pathways are understood as the routes through which disturbances move from initiating hazards toward downstream failures.
These pathways connect initial disturbances to disruptions in infrastructure, services, institutions, markets, ecosystems, and behavioural responses. They provide the system-level substrate on which the 27 interaction types operate.
Diagnostic distinction
A transmission pathway describes the route of systemic propagation; the interaction type describes the process active along that route.
The added value of the proposed framework lies in treating systemic vulnerability and system-wide disruption as complementary parts of the same process. Systemic vulnerability identifies the latent predisposition of a system to disproportionate failure, while interaction types identify the pathways through which that predisposition is activated, transmitted, and amplified.
Analytical question
The integration changes the analytical question from “Where is the system vulnerable?” or “How do failures cascade?” to “Which vulnerability structures become cascade-prone when activated through specific interaction mechanisms, topologies, and timing regimes?”