Ecological Systems Theory: Exploring the Development of the Theoretical Framework as Conceived by Bronfenbrenner
Open accessAbstract
The Ecological Systems theory represents a convergence of biological, psychological, and social sciences. Through the study of the ecology of human development, social scientists seek to explain and understand the ways in which an individual interacts with the interrelated systems within that individual’s environment (Bronfenbrenner, 1983a). Bronfenbrenner (1994) sought to develop a theory of human development that would consider the influences of all of the systems that play a role in impacting the lived experiences of the individual no matter how remote the influence. Today, many of these concepts are commonplace in social work practice (micro-, meso-, and macrosystems, for instance); however, its foundation of empirical support is often less understood. This article will explore the historical development of the Ecological Systems theory through the works of Bronfenbrenner, will examine the empirical evidence supporting the theory, and will discuss the implications of the theory within social work practice.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The different system levels that influence learning development are micro, meso, exo, macro, and chrono.
“The different system levels that influence learning development are the micro: the pattern of activities, relations, and roles that individuals experience directly; meso: a system of micro-systems formed through their interactions; exo: the larger social system the individual is not part of, but influences their development; the more diffuse macro: the influences and structures of culture and”
From Neurodivergent (Autism and ADHD) student experiences of access and inclusion in higher education: an ecological systems theory perspective (2025) · cites this paper as Crawford, 2020
EST is a theoretical framework converging psychological, biological, and social sciences to understand and explain human learning and development through how individuals interact with and are influenced by inter-related systems within their environments.
“EST is a theoretical framework converging psychological, biological, and social sciences to understand and explain human learning and development through how individuals interact with and are influenced by inter-related systems within their environments (Bronfenbrenner, 1994;Crawford, 2020).”
From Neurodivergent (Autism and ADHD) student experiences of access and inclusion in higher education: an ecological systems theory perspective (2025) · cites this paper as Crawford, 2020
No citation lists for this paper
No citation lists for this paper yet — checked again daily.
References 31 · Cited by 242
- Authors
- Crawford, M.
- Affiliations
- California State University, Fresno (US)
- Corresponding author
- Crawford, Marcus
- ORCID
- Crawford, Marcus
- Venue
- Journal of Public Health Issues and Practices
- Publisher
- Gexinonline Publications
- Published
- 2020
- Volume
- 4
- Issue
- 2
- ISSN
- 2581-7264 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W4244290194
- Cited by
- 242
- References
- 31
- Citations by year
- 2026: 77 · 2025: 90 · 2024: 53 · 2023: 16 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 2 · 2018: 1
- FWCI
- 7.15
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- diamond
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Public Health Issues and Practices (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Safety Research › Youth Development and Social Support
- Social Sciences › Public Administration › Social Work Education and Practice
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
- Keywords
- ecological systems theory, Bronfenbrenner, human development, microsystems, mesosystem, macrosystem, social work practice
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
