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Urie Bronfenbrenner's Theory of Human Development: Its Evolution From Ecology to Bioecology
Open accessAbstract
We describe the evolution, over three phases, of Bronfenbrenner's theory from an ecological to a bioecological theory. Phase 1 (1973–1979) culminated in the publication of The Ecology of Human Development (1979). Phase 2 (1980–1993) saw almost immediate modifications to the theory, with more attention paid to the role of the individual and greater concern with developmental processes. In Phase 3 (1993–2006), proximal processes were defined and placed at the heart of bioecological theory, and from 1998, the Process‐Person‐Context‐Time ( PPCT ) model was described as the theory's appropriate research design. Given the extent of these changes, and to avoid theoretical incoherence, scholars should be cautious about stating that their research is based on Bronfenbrenner's theory without specifying which version they are using .
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“These iterations were developed across three distinct phases: (a) 1973-1979, (b) 1983-1993, and (c) 1993-2006 (Rosa & Tudge, 2013).”
From Technologizing Bronfenbrenner: Neo-ecological Theory. (2023) · cites this paper as Rosa & Tudge, 2013
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“Bronfenbrenner’s theory, being fully developed by the turn of the century (Rosa & Tudge, 2013), did not consider the impact of developing in the digital age.”
From Technologizing Bronfenbrenner: Neo-ecological Theory. (2023) · cites this paper as Rosa & Tudge, 2013
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Citations
Cites
The Ecology of Human Development: Experiments by Nature and Design
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979) · Harvard University Press eBooks · doi:10.4159/9780674028845 · Cited by 26,084
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“…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).”
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1 of the 42 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
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- Bronfenbrenner U., 1975, Reality and research in the ecology of human development, Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, 119, 439
- Bronfenbrenner U, 1988, Persons in contexts: Developmental processes (pp. 25–49)
- Bronfenbrenner U., 1993, Development in context: Acting and thinking in specific environments, 3
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“…considers not only individual characteristics but also the influence of the multiple contexts in which students are embedded, reinforcing the centrality of the university as a privileged space for development (Bronfenbrenner, 1977; Gaspar et al., 2025; Limone and Toto, 2022; Rosa and Tudge, 2013).”
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Metadata
- Authors
- Rosa, E. M., & Tudge, J.
- Affiliations
- University of North Carolina at Greensboro (US)
- ORCID
- Tudge, Jonathan
- Venue
- Journal of Family Theory & Review
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2013-12
- Volume
- 5
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 243-258
- ISSN
- 1756-2570 (ISSN-L)
- 1756-2589
- OpenAlex
- W1675192189
- Semantic Scholar
- 5ad78d042a25ab1c40f7ad12f034e7f019951c62
- Cited by
- 775
- References
- 42
- Citations by year
- 2026: 127 · 2025: 99 · 2024: 82 · 2023: 65 · 2022: 76 · 2021: 86 · 2020: 67 · 2019: 48 · 2018: 39 · 2017: 28 · 2016: 24 · 2015: 23 · 2014: 10 · 2013: 1
- FWCI
- 39.97
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- libres.uncg.edu
- Locations
- Journal of Family Theory & Review (publishedVersion)
- NC Digital Online Collection of Knowledge and Scholarship (The University of North Carolina at Greensboro) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior
- Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul
- University of North Carolina at Greensboro
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Psychology of Development and Education
- Social Sciences › Education › Early Childhood Education and Development
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
- Keywords
- Bronfenbrenner, bioecological model, ecological systems theory, human development theory, proximal processes, Process-Person-Context-Time model, developmental processes
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