Urie Bronfenbrenner's Theory of Human Development: Its Evolution From Ecology to Bioecology

“…process indicated that he considered them as almost always acting in a positive way on developmental outcomes, whether by promoting outcomes of competence or by diminishing the possibility of dysfunctional outcomes (1994; Bronfenbrenner & Ceci, 1993, 1994; Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 1998, 2006).”

“…was one that not only dealt with the influences both of context and of individual characteristics of the people within those contexts (this, after all, is the essence of any ‘ecological’ approach) but that it was also necessary to highlight the relevant ‘processes’ involved (Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“As the bioecological theory of human development (Bronfenbrenner and Morris, 2006; Rosa and Tudge, 2013; Tudge et al., 2016; Xia et al., 2020) predicts, frequent exercise of a certain intensity is a factor that causes good health.”

“The research findings indicated that different personal factors can enhance or mitigate anxiety (Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 2006; Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“In current mainstream developmental psychology, the ecological label is often associated with Urie Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological view of human development (e.g., Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 2006; Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“Bronfenbrenner proposed that the developing child is surrounded by layers of relationships, like a set of nested Russian dolls (Bronfenbrenner, 2006; Bronfrenner & Morris, 2006; Tudge, Mokrova, Hatfield, & Karnik, 2009; Rosa & Tudge, 2013; McInerney, 2014).”

“The key ingredient in the PPCT framework is the interaction between individuals and their milieu, the proximal process, also called the engine of the PPCT framework (Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“Because applying a theoretical framework that informs intervention design and evaluation is considered an essential aspect of successful interventions (Rosa & Tudge, 2013), this suggests that inadequate consideration was given to the development and design of these interventions.”

“The outcomes of this study lend support to the ecological systems theory, which holds that human interaction with their environment leads to development [19].”

“Rosa and Tudge (2013) define each of these systems: The microsystem refers to “the most proximal setting, with particular physical characteristics, in which a person is situated” (p. 246).”

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“The idea emphasises the developing individual and the learning environment created and the individuals who inhabit it, with their intricate web of human relationships, roles, actions, and processes (Härkönen, 2007, Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“Rosa and Tudge (2013) have divided this theory into three parts: the fi rst part emphasizes the role of ecological environment, which is further divided into four subsystems, which are (1) microsystem, (2) mesosystem, (3) exosystem, and (4) macro system.”

“Proximal processes as described by Bronfenbrenner implies “almost always acting in a positive way on developmental outcomes” (Rosa & Tudge, 2013, p. 252), either through the promotion of competence or the reduction of dysfunctional outcomes (Merçon-Vargas et al., 2020).”

“The prominence of time was highlighted with references to microtime – the consistency of proximal processes; mesotime – how often proximal processes occur; and macrotime – historical time (Rosa and Tudge 2013).”

“…placing equal emphasis on the strengths and competences of young people and the contributions they can make to their environments by conceiving development as the product of the dynamic interactions that people experience with the changing contexts in which they are embedded (Rosa and Tudge 2013).”

“So the Time encompasses change and stability of individual and group human development, throughout the course of life and across generations in history(16).”

“Bioecological model of human development Bronfenbrenner.35,43,53 A theory of how human development occurs through progressively more complex interactions between an individual and their environments.”

“…the cognitive development of students, the youngsters have difficulty interacting with other actors of the society that are outside of their mesosystem (Rosa and Tudge, 2013), although curriculum and competences are already designed to work on this problem at a earlier age (Williams et al., 2014).”

“A key feature of Bronfenbrenner’s work is the process–person–context–time model [31].”

“Demand characteristics refer to traits that “invite or discourage reactions from the social environment,” such as an engaging personality or calm demeanor as well as physical traits like “age, gender, and skin color” (Rosa & Tudge, 2013, p. 253).”

“…model’s emphasis on multilevel interactions between personal characteristics and broader social contexts (Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 2007; Rosa & Tudge, 2013), extending our understanding of how systemic factors, such as societal stigma and resource access, shape mental health outcomes…”

“Bronfenbrenner’s Bioecological Systems Theory (Bronfenbrenner 1979; Rosa and Tudge 2013) was introduced during the analysis (Magana 2022) to analyze and present the data in this publication.”

“In time, Bronfenbrenner’s SEM has evolved beyond identifying ecological systems that influence individuals by examining interactions between person and context (e.g. Rosa and Tudge 2013).”

“Among them, the characteristic of force [or ‘disposition’; Bronfenbrenner (1995) is considered the most likely to influence a person’s developmental outcomes (Rosa and Tudge, 2013)].”

“This includes their immediate setting (family, friends) to the more remote and abstract environment of cultural influences, societal values and policies which will influence each other over time [19].”

“Although each system plays an essential role in the child’s development, this study focuses upon the mesosystem and microsystem, which are more easily observed (Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological theory [88] was clearly evident throughout the study, where both the mothers’ and children’s interaction with various systems played a vital role.”

“…on microsystems and mesosystems, including societal institutions of health and welfare such as schools and child protection services); and macrosystems (economic, legal, and political systems that shape beliefs, ideologies, and behaviors of societies) (Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“This finding is consistent with Bonfenbrenner’s socioecological model, suggesting that the status in the community is more salient than the status in the society because of the immediate context of our interactions with those in our community [58].”

“Multidirectional and dynamic interactions across this system affect the individual’s development both directly and indirectly (Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“Stigma is a concept that involves negative feelings or beliefs, thoughts, and behaviours or actions which are manifested at different levels, i.e., at the level of the individual (micro), local institutions (meso) and society (macro) [6,7].”

“…is depicted as the spectrum of changes and evolutions experienced by a person over their lifetime, encompassing physical, emotional, cognitive, and social development stages, as well as the interactions among proximal processes, the person, context, and time components (Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“Within the family, both EST and family systems theory (Cox & Paley, 2003; Rosa & Tudge, 2013) note that different relationships, called “family sub-systems,” can affect child development.”

“For the present study, we draw on Meyerson and Martin (1987) and Rosa and Tudge (2013).”

“…need to wear masks on public transport is in line with social norms, and the finding is also partially explainable by ecological psychology theory [49,50], in which people’s behaviors and social thoughts are thought to be determined by time, physical environment, and the duration of time spent in…”

“…models may serve to bring attention to these important aspects (Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Garc ıa Coll et al., 1996; Linder, Platt, & Young, 2018; Rosa & Tudge, 2013), though little work has applied ecological models to the use of mindfulness with marginalized groups such as U.S. Latinx couples.”

“In their review of the evolving bioecological model of human development, Rosa and Tudge ( 2013 ) explicitly remind researchers to look at proximal family processes as central to understanding the mutual infl uences between the developing individual and his or her environments over time.”

“In the initial theory, Bronfenbrenner focused primarily on the importance of different contexts in human development and behaviour (see Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“Interpersonal dynamics within broader societal contexts, particularly neighborhood relationships, have been largely overlooked (Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“This influence is bidirectional, with each individual possessing the ability to influence their environment (Rosa and Tudge, 2013; Michell et al. , 2018).”

“Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological framework offers a multi-level system span from biology to ecology that incorporates culture, and also allows for examination of influences related to the passage of historical and ontogenetic time (Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“In other words, it is plausible that, as delineated in the bioecological theory (Rosa & Tudge, 2013), the proximal processes remain a more critical source of influences on individuals’ learning outcomes and academic prospects than distal processes.”

“Bronfenbrenner believed that in order to understand human development and mental health the entire ecological system surrounding the individual must be taken into consideration [8].”

“We also looked at interrelations between individuals and their environment (Tudge et al., 1997; Bronfenbrenner and Morris, 1998; Rosa and Tudge, 2013)”

“Hence, ecological methodologies should be in ‘the discovery’ mode rather than the mode of verification suggesting inductive enquiries are better suited to this model than deductive reasoning (Rosa and Tudge 2013, 254).”

“It is critical to consider the chronosystem while introducing change (Rosa and Tudge 2013).”

“…that affects their development, for example, the time parents spend with them due to work obligations, referred to as the exosystem; and fourth, the interactions children experience stemming from their cultural value system, referred to as the macrosystem (Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“Researchers should, therefore, ensure that they are designing research projects that are coherent with the original tenets of primary theories (Rosa & Tudge, 2013; Weiss & Raedeke, 2004).”

“…is Bronfenbrenner’s theory of human ecology, which suggests that there is a mutual relationship and reciprocity between individuals and their environments, interacting at multiple levels, from micro- to macro-systems in their everyday lives (Bronfenbrenner 1994; Turchin 2001; Rosa and Tudge 2013).”

“The PPCT model incorporates all four components and provides a valuable framework for analyzing the complexity of young people’s educational experiences, including SAPs (El Zaatari & Maalouf, 2022; Hayes et al., 2017; Navarro et al., 2022; Rosa & Tudge, 2013; Tong & An, 2024).”

“Based on Bronfenbrenner’s theory, human development was the result of the interaction between the individual and the environment (Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“…and Research In later writings, Bronfenbrenner developed the process-person-contexttime framework and posited that four factors concurrently influence individuals: (a) proximal process, (b) person characteristics, (c) context, and (d) time (Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 2006; Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“The person dimension refers to the biologically based person characteristics of an individual (Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”

“Data was collected using a focus group discussion guide which was formulated by the research team based on the socio-ecological model, as a theoretical framework [33].”

“The framework most commonly used for classifying family context variables is that offered by Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological model [6,7], which sees development as the result of an interactive process between the individual, as the carrier of individual characteristics, and the contextual factors located at different s…”

“Furthermore, children inhabit layers of environments that can influence their development over time (Bronfren - brenner & Ceci, 1994; Rosa & Tudge 2013).”