Advantages And Disadvantages Of Bronfenbrenner's Ecological System Theory

Urie Bronfenbrenner was a Russian born American, he was born on 29 April 1917 and died on 25 September 2005. Urie was a developmental psychologist and was very well known for his ecological systems theory on child’s development. This theory basically states that there are different levels that influence a child’s development. Each level of this system has its own advantages and disadvantages and each level is of the same importance as the other.
This ecological systems theory shows that a child develops through his surroundings and his environment Bronfenbrenner’s theory states that there are many complex layers of environments which each have an effect on a child’s development. This ecological theory is also known as bioecological systems

Examples of these factors would be a child’s extended family members, a child’s neighbourhood where they are staying and maybe even the parents of the child’s workplace. These factors in this system can have a negative or a positive influence on the development rate of a child. For example, if a child’s parents lose their job this can become a problem for the child as the parent won’t be able to buy food, and pay rent. This will have a negative effect on the child’s development. Another example would be if a child’s parent gets a raise or a promotion the parent will be able to give the child a better way of living.
The last level of Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory is known as the macrosystem. This level is the largest level and might not seem to have such a great affect on a child, but even though it doesn’t seem like it has an effect on a child it can be the level that has the most affect on a child. This level has a great influence on a child’s development. Like all the other levels the level can also affect a child either positive or negatively. Examples of things that make up the macrosystem are cultural values, the economy, wars that might take place and human rights such as