Social Ecological Model of Human Development
This model, developed primarily by Dr. Urie Bronfenbrenner, is often portrayed by concentric circles with the individual at the center.
The social elements...
- relationships
- settings
- groups
- social institutions
- social class
- etc.
...in each circle, influence the circles inside it.
The person – which, in infancy consists primarily of biological makeup– is directly influenced by the immediate environment or the nearest circle surrounding them. The individual reacts to and acts on the environment nearest them which sets into play a series of interactions between social environments.This on-going interaction establishes a system.
Efforts to promote health using this model focus on the interactions between the various environments, how the entire social system is maintained and attempts to alter the interaction between the various environments such as the social qualities within the environments that have the most influence on the person, their behavior and how that person interacts with their social environment.
Cognitive Learning theory, Social Norm theory and many community change approaches integrate aspects of the Human ecological model.