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Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems: 5 Forces Impacting Our Lives - YouTube
Channel: Sprouts
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In 1964, a young psychologist appearedÂ
before the US congress with a mission. Â
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It was a time when most people thoughtÂ
that the reason poor people stayed poor Â
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was a matter of biology and had nothing toÂ
do with the environment they grew up in. Â
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The psychologist, Uri Bronfenbrenner, wantedÂ
to change that and convince the world that Â
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to help those less fortunate, we also need toÂ
change their surroundings. But did he succeed?
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Bronfenbrenner's Ecological System Theory
conceives that a child is influenced by five
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ecological forces.
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First comes the microsystem of family and
friends that affect the child directly.Second
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are the forces of the connections between
the people around the child:parents with teachers
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and teachers with peers.
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Then there are links between social settings
that do not directly involve the child,such
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as the father with his boss,the peers with
their parents and the teacher with the principal.
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Next, is the overarching culture, religion
and social norms that influences all others.And
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lastly, there is time - which changes everything
over the course of oneâs life.
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Children are born into a Microsystem that
influences the child's experiences directly.
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Children from unfortunate backgrounds are
more likely to experience problematic family
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structures -even if itâs simply for the
fact that parenting is more difficult if you
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are poor.They also encounter more negative
situations at school or bad influences through
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friends.
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Consequently, a child that grows up in a negative
microsystem,will find it hard to succeed.
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The Mesosystem represents the interconnections
between the elements that surround the child.
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For example the relationship between the father
and the school teachers.
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If the father doesnât get along with a teacher,the
child might suffer.
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The EXOSYSTEM involves links between social
settings that do not involve the child.For
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example, a child's experience at home can
be influenced by their parent's experiences
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at work.
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If the mother loses her job, there might be
more arguments with the father,resulting in
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changes in their interaction with the child.
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The MACROSYSTEMdescribes the overarching culture
that influences all other systems,such as
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a childâs geographic location and ethnicity.
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Intelligent people who happen to live in bad
places are more likely to move to better ones.But
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that also means that they are more likely
to be strangers in a richer society.
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So regardless of the childâs biological
potential or upbringing, on a macro level
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he or she may still be at a disadvantage.
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The CHRONOSYSTEM,refers to changes in the
child,and the environment over time.As the
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child grows up the parents may stop loving
each other and divorce, which can be traumatic
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for an eight year old boy.Five years later,
he may have come to terms with how things
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turned out.But when the boy turns 16, his
momâs new boyfriend moves into their tiny
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apartment, and things get difficult again.[4]
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Bronfenbrenner, who was influenced by Lev
Vygotsky and Kurt Lewin, convinced the US
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congress that a childâs prospect is not
genetically predestined,but is the result
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of the larger environment they happen to be
placed in.
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Children who grow up in unfortunate social
structures therefore need a form of support
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that not only reaches their families,but also
elements of their community.
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Bronfenbrenner's theory helped form the Head
Start program in 1965,a government program
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that has served more than 35 million poor
children since.
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Decades later, Bronfenbrenner and Stephen
Ceciproposed an extension of this theory,
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called the "bioecological model,.This new
model recognizes geneâenvironment interactions
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and acknowledges the role of heritability,
but adds that genes themselve are under the
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influence of the environment.In other words,
the process of heritability varies in a magnitude
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of potentials.
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How much a child can make of the potentialÂ
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they inherit,depends onÂ
the ecological environment.
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Bronfenbrenner made a critical contribution
to our realization that parent-child relationships
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do not exist in a social vacuum but are embedded
in the larger structures, such as community,
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society, and culture.
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In order to develop well, he allegedly said,
âevery child needs at least one adult who
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is irrationally crazy about him or her.â
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Now itâs your turn,make five circles, draw
yourself in the center and add a timeline
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at the bottom.
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Then add all the people, institutions and
forces that affect your life.
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On the timeline below you can add some major
events from the past and those you expect
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in the future.
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Can you tell how the 5 forces are shaping
your life?
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To read more about the topic or download theÂ
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video without backgroundÂ
music, visit sproutsschools.com
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