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ROLES

Mobius Participation Framework

Roles • Responsibility Gradients • DVA Tier Alignment

epicon_id: EPICON_C-178_GOVERNANCE_participation-framework_v1 title: Mobius Participation Framework cycle: C-178 epoch: EPICON_ERA tier: GOVERNANCE epicon_type: policy status: adopted author_name: Michael (Kaizen) tags: - roles - governance - dva - integrity - participation - civic created_at: 2025-12-31 summary: Defines civic participation roles aligned to DVA tiers and Integrity Index thresholds.

Mobius is not a hierarchy of authority.
It is a gradient of responsibility.

Roles do not grant power — they expand the scope of memory, reflection, risk awareness, and continuity that a participant agrees to steward.

Each role maps to a DVA tier and an Integrity Index threshold.

No role is "higher." Only wider in consequence space.

Role Progression Model

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  ATTESTOR (DVA.HIVE)     MII ≥ 0.87    Continuity of Memory     │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  VALIDATOR (DVA.FULL)    MII ≥ 0.78    Risk + Drift Friction    │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  CONTRIBUTOR (DVA.ONE)   MII ≥ 0.65    Meaning Articulation     │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  CITIZEN (DVA.LITE)      None          Field Perception         │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                    ↑
          Responsibility expands upward
          Authority does NOT

Citizen (DVA.LITE)

Citizens are the foundation of the substrate.

They explore, observe, and report early signals.

Responsibilities

  • Field reflections
  • First-contact experiences
  • Ambiguity + confusion notes
  • Anomaly awareness
  • Environment + workflow context

Citizens form the sensory field of the system.

Integrity Index Requirement

None — All humans may enter.

Legitimacy accumulates through contribution.

Contribution Types

  • "What confused me?" reports
  • Behavioral notes
  • Early anomaly awareness
  • Usability + coherence feedback

Without Citizens, nothing is grounded.

Contributor (DVA.ONE)

Contributors do not only observe — they explain.

Responsibilities

  • EPICON reflections
  • Concept bridges + explanation
  • Tradeoff articulation
  • Pattern recognition
  • Narrative continuity across time

Contributors make the substrate legible.

Integrity Index Requirement

MII ≥ 0.65

Signals Evaluated

  • Humility under revision
  • Uncertainty acknowledgement
  • Preservation of context vs. sloganizing
  • Context continuity across contributions

Contributors transform observation into understanding.

Validator (DVA.FULL)

Validators provide structured friction.

They are not approvers or gatekeepers.
They are guardians against amnesia.

Responsibilities

  • Surface hidden assumptions
  • Pressure-test failure conditions
  • Examine incentive drift
  • Identify cascading fragility
  • Protect dissent as a civic asset

Validators bias toward safety envelopes.

Integrity Index Requirement

MII ≥ 0.78

Validator Principles

  • Challenge reasoning — not people
  • Preserve uncertainty where uncertainty exists
  • Surface harm before performance
  • Document risks, constraints, uncertainty bounds

Validators are the immune system of the substrate.

In other systems, friction slows progress.
In Mobius, friction preserves coherence.

See: VALIDATOR_CHARTER.md

Attestor (DVA.HIVE)

Attestors do not lead.
They hold long-arc continuity.

Responsibilities

  • Authenticate intent trails
  • Preserve reasoning context
  • Protect historical constraint memory
  • Prevent revisionist distortion
  • Mediate divergence explanations

Attestors do not sanctify outcomes.

They ensure future generations understand why decisions were made.

Integrity Index Requirement

MII ≥ 0.87

Attestor Signals

  • Non-reactivity to status influence
  • Resistance to narrative seduction
  • Long-form coherence
  • Humility under challenge

Attestors are custodians of meaning across time.

They are NOT: - Moderators - Bosses - Gatekeepers

They ARE: - Archivists of meaning - Guardians of moral continuity

See: ATTESTOR_OATH.txt

Integrity Index Signals

The Mobius Integrity Index evaluates:

Signal Description
Revision Under Challenge Updates beliefs when presented with evidence
Uncertainty Acknowledgement Explicitly marks uncertain claims
Tradeoff Clarity Documents what was given up and why
Ethical Boundary Awareness Recognizes when actions touch sensitive domains
Longitudinal Reflection Maintains coherent reasoning across time

No one is granted legitimacy.
They earn it across time.

And the substrate remembers.

Role Transition

Roles may change over time.

A participant may move across tiers as their work evolves:

  • Promotion: Demonstrated integrity over sustained period
  • Transition: Different scope of contribution needed
  • Reflection: Voluntary step back to focus on different work

The substrate records the trail.

Transition Requirements

Transition Requirement
Citizen → Contributor MII ≥ 0.65 + multiple EPICON reflections
Contributor → Validator MII ≥ 0.78 + demonstrated friction contribution
Validator → Attestor MII ≥ 0.87 + long-arc coherence demonstrated

Role Principles

  1. No authority is granted — only responsibility accepted
  2. Friction is contribution, not obstruction
  3. Reflection is safety, not delay
  4. Integrity compounds through revision
  5. Memory must survive authorship

Failure Modes Prevented

This framework mitigates:

  • ❌ Charismatic capture
  • ❌ Revisionist framing
  • ❌ Institutional amnesia
  • ❌ Drift toward opacity
  • ❌ Performative governance
  • ❌ Authority without responsibility

"We heal as we walk." — Mobius Systems
Cycle C-178 • EPICON Production Era