Lesson 2: Ecological Systems Theory

CONCEPTS

American psychologist, Urie Bronfenbrenner (1917-2005), formulated the Ecological Systems Theory
(1975) to explain how the inherent qualities of a child and his environment interact to influence how he
will grow and develop Through the Bronfenbrenner Ecological Theory, he stressed the importance of
studying a child in the context of multiple environments, also known as ecological systems in the attempt
to understand his development. A child typically finds himself simultaneously enmeshed in different
ecosystems, from the most intimate home ecological system moving outward to the larger school system
and the most expansive system which is society and culture. Each of these systems inevitably interacts
with and influences each other in every aspect of the child’s life.

The Urie Bronfenbrenner model organizes contexts of development into five (5) levels of external
influence:

1. The microsystem is the smallest and most immediate environment in which the child lives As
such, the microsystem comprises the daily home, school or daycare, peer group of community
environment of the child. The child’s interaction with these systems will definitely shape his
behavior
2. The mesosystem encompasses the interaction of the different microsystems which the
developing child finds himself in it is, in essence, a system of microsystems and as such. Involves
linkages between home and school, between peer group and family, or between family and
church. If a child’s parents are actively involved in the friendships of their child invite friends over
to their house and spend time with them, then the child’s development is affected positively
through harmony and like-mindedress. However, the child’s parents dislike their child’s peers and
openly criticize them, then the child experiences disequilibrium and conflicting emotions,
probably affecting his development negatively.
3. The exosystem pertains to the linkages that may exist between two or more settings, one of
which may not contain the developing child but affects him indirectly nonetheless. Other people
and places which the child may not directly interact with but may still have an effect on the child,
comprise the exosystem. Such places and people may include the parents workplaces, the larger
neighborhood, and extended family members. For example, a father who is continually passed
up for promotion by an indifferent boss at the workplace may take it out on his children and
mistreat them at home
4. The macrosystem is the largest and most distant collection of people and places to the child that
still exercises significant influence on the child. It is composed of the child’s cultural patterns and
values, specifically the child’s dominant beliefs and ideas, as well as political and economic
systems. Children in war-tom areas, for example, will experience a different kind of development
than children in communities where peace reigns.
5. The chronosystem adds the useful dimension of time, which demonstrates the influence of both
change and constancy in the child’s environment. The chronosystem may thus include a change
in family structure, address, parent’s employment status, in addition to immense society
changes such as economic cycles and wars. For example, a child who frequently bullies smaller
children at school may portray the role of a terrified victim at home. All the examples and
concepts of the theory have been taken from (https://www.
Psychologynoteshq.com/bronfenbrenner-ecological-theory).