No. 1932
Urie Bronfenbrenner and Child Development
Ecological Systems Theory
One other developmental theory needs to be addressed, even though it's not a stage theory.
Urie Bronfenbrenner (1917-2005) developed the ecological
systems theory to explain how everything in a child and the child's
environment affects how a child grows and develops. He labeled different
aspects or levels of the environment that influence children's development,
including the microsystem, the mesosystem, the exosystem, and the
macrosystem.
The microsystem is the small, immediate
environment the child lives in. Children's microsystems will include any
immediate relationships or organizations they interacts with, such as their
immediate family or caregivers and their school or daycare. How these groups
or organizations interact with the child will have an effect on how the
child grows; the more encouraging and nurturing these relationships and
places are, the better the child will be able to grow. Furthermore, how a
child acts or reacts to these people in the microsystem will affect how they
treat her in return. Each child's special genetic and biologically
influenced personality traits, what is known as temperament, end up
affecting how others treat them.
Bronfenbrenner's next level, the mesosystem, describes how
the different parts of a child's microsystem work together for the sake of
the child. For example, if a child's caregivers take an active role in a
child's school, such as going to parent-teacher conferences and watching
their child's soccer games, this will help ensure the child's overall
growth. In contrast, if the child's two sets of caretakers, mom with
step-dad and dad with step-mom, disagree how to best raise the child and
give the child conflicting lessons when they see him, this will hinder the
child's growth in different channels.
The exosystem level includes the other people and places
that the child herself may not interact with often herself but that still
have a large affect on her, such as parents' workplaces, extended family
members, the neighborhood, etc. For example, if a child's parent gets laid
off from work, that may have negative affects on the child if her parents
are unable to pay rent or to buy groceries; however, if her parent receives
a promotion and a raise at work, this may have a positive affect on the
child because her parents will be better able to give her her physical
needs.
Bronfenbrenner's final level is the macrosystem, which is
the largest and most remote set of people and things to a child but which
still has a great influence over the child. The macrosystem includes things
such as the relative freedoms permitted by the national government, cultural
values, the economy, wars, etc. These things can also affect a child either
positively or negatively.
Angela Oswalt
http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=7930
