Ecological Systems Theory

(noun)

Ecological systems theory, also called development in context or human ecology theory, specifies four types of nested environmental systems, with bi-directional influences within and between the systems.

Related Terms

  • Theory of Cognitive Development
  • Psychosexual Theory of Human Development

Examples of Ecological Systems Theory in the following topics:

  • Theoretical Perspectives on Childhood Socialization

    • One of the most widely applied theories of childhood is Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development.
    • In 1979, psychologist Urie Bronfenbrenner published The Ecology of Human Development, setting forth his theory known as ecological systems theory.
    • Also called development in context theory or human ecology theory, the ecology systems theory specifies five different types of nested environmental systems: the microsystem, the mesosystem, the exosystem, the macrosystem, and the chronosystem.
    • Each of these systems exerts influence on an individual, particularly children as they are robustly socialized.
    • Contrast the various theories of childhood development, such as Freud's psychosexual theory, Piaget's stages of development and ecological systems theory
  • Sociological Perspectives on Urban Life

    • Subcultural theories popularized the idea that segments of society, such as gangs and homeless populations, had internal systems of value and order.
    • Urban ecology refers to an idea that emerged out of the Chicago School that likens urban organization to biological organisms.
    • Urban ecology has remained an influential theory in both urban sociology and urban anthropology over time.
    • The theory is essentially an extended metaphor that helps to explain how conflicting subgroups exist in shared urban spaces and systems.
    • Relating this to functionalist theory, one can look at immigration and emigration trends.
  • Lenski's Sociological Evolution Approach

    • Sociocultural evolution is an umbrella term for theories of cultural evolution and social evolution, describing how cultures and societies have changed over time.
    • Gerhard Lenski is an American sociologist known for contributions to the sociology of religion, social inequality, and ecological-evolutionary social theory.
    • Advances in the technology of communication translate into advances in a society's economic system and political system, distribution of goods, social inequality and other spheres of social life.
  • The Interactionist Perspective

    • Evolving out of the mid-20th century "Chicago School" of urban sociology, Park created the term human ecology, which borrowed the concepts of symbiosis, invasion, succession, and dominance from the science of natural ecology.
    • Competition was created by groups fighting for urban resources, like land, which led to a division of urban space into ecological niches.
    • Within these niches people shared similar social characteristics because they were subject to the same ecological pressure.
    • This theory served as a foundation for his influential theory of racial assimilation known as the "race relation cycle".
  • Population Growth and Overpopulation

    • Overpopulation indicates a scenario in which the population of a living species exceeds the carrying capacity of its ecological niche.
    • Resources to be taken into account when estimating if an ecological niche is overpopulated include clean water, food, shelter, warmth, etc.
    • Proponents of this theory, Neo-Malthusians state that these famines were examples of Malthusian catastrophes.
    • Other measures include effective family planning programs, local renewable energy systems, sustainable agriculture methods and supplies, reforestation, and measures to protect the local environment.
    • David Pimentel, a Cornell University professor of ecology and agricultural sciences, sees several possible scenarios for the 22nd century:
  • The Structure of Cities

    • This dispersion of cities illustrates central place theory.
    • It draws on human ecology theories, which compared the city to an ecosystem, with processes of adaptation and assimilation.
    • Urban residents naturally sort themselves into appropriate rings, or ecological niches, depending on class and cultural assimilation.
    • Urban open spaces provide citizens with recreational, ecological, aesthetic value.
    • Analyze, using human ecology theory, the similarities and differences between the various urban structure models, such as grid model, sectoral model and concentric ring model, among others
  • External Sources of Social Change

    • There are many theories of social change.
    • Political Process Theory, sometimes also known as the Political Opportunity Theory,is an approach to social movements heavily influenced by political sociology.
    • In this case, the idea is that certain members of society feel like they are being mistreated or that somehow the system they are a part of is unjust .
    • Finally, "political opportunity" refers to the receptivity or vulnerability of the existing political system to challenge.
    • Critics of the political process theory and resource-mobilization theory point out that neither theory discusses the culture of movements to any great degree.
  • World-Systems Theory

    • World Systems Theory posits that there is a world economic system in which some countries benefit while others are exploited.
    • World Systems Theory, like dependency theory, suggests that wealthy countries benefit from other countries and exploit those countries' citizens.
    • In contrast to dependency theory, however, this model recognizes the minimal benefits that are enjoyed by low status countries in the world system.
    • The theory originated with sociologist Immanuel Wallerstein, who suggests that the way a country is integrated into the capitalist world system determines how economic development takes place in that country.
    • Produce a map of the world that shows some countries as core, peripheral, and semi-peripheral according to Wallerstein's theory
  • State-Centered Theories

    • According to state-centered theories of inequality, the government should regulate the distribution of resources to protect workers.
    • In contrast to market-oriented theories of inequality, state-centered theories do not assert that the capitalist free-market will naturally regulate prices and wages.
    • Socialism is an economic and political system in which the state owns the majority industry, but resources are allocated based on a combination of natural rights and individual achievements.
    • Socialism includes a combination of public and private property, while under communist systems all property is publicly held and administered by the state.
    • A socialist economic system would consist of an organisation of production to directly satisfy economic demands and human needs.
  • The Conflict Perspective

    • Conflict theories are perspectives in social science that emphasize the social, political, or material inequality of a social group, that critique the broad socio-political system, or that otherwise detract from structural functionalism and ideological conservatism.
    • At the same time, Karl Marx was aware that most of the people living in capitalist societies did not see how the system shaped the entire operation of society.
    • In general, Marx wanted the working class to rise up against the capitalists and overthrow the capitalist system .
    • Conflict theory is most commonly associated with Marxism, but as a reaction to functionalism and the positivist method, it may also be associated with a number of other perspectives, including critical theory, feminist theory, postmodern theory, post-structural theory, postcolonial theory, queer theory, world systems theory, and race-conflict theory.
    • Karl Marx wanted to replace false consciousness with class consciousness, in which the working class would rise up against the capitalist system.
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