Looks at developmental theories from a socioecological perspective.

1. Dr Phil Turns Academic:
Socio-ecological approaches in
human development
EDUC 236
Fiona Beals

2. Lecture Aims
• Introduce socio-ecological
approaches to human
development
• Explore how these approaches
fit within a wider framework
• Begin to conceptualise how
these approaches would look
in practice

3. Readings
• Harms, L. (2005). Understanding Human
Development: a multidimensional approach.
Melbourne: Oxford University Press.
• Santrock, J. W. (2005). A Topical Approach to
Life-Span Development (2 ed.). Boston:
McGraw-Hill.
• Paquette, D., & Ryan, J. (2001).
Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Theory.
Retrieved 30 March, 2006, from
pt3.nl.edu/paquetteryanwebquest.pdf

4. Lecture Format
1. Defining the socio-ecological
2. Situating the socio-ecological
3. Advantages and disadvantages in
socio-ecological approaches
4. Two socio-ecological models
– Bronfenbrenner
– Harms
5. What about Dr. Phil
6. Case studies

5. Defining the Socio-Ecological

6. Defining the socio-ecological
• Breaking it down …
– Socio = social
– Ecological = environment or context
• So “socio-ecological” is …
– Development in context
– Acknowledging that development is influenced
by the many social contexts surrounding an
individual

7. Defining the socio-ecological

8. What these words share

9. What these words share
• An idea that development is not as simple as a
child becoming an adult

10. What these words share
• An idea that development is not as simple as a
child becoming an adult
• An emphasis on context and seeing the bigger
picture around an individual

11. What these words share
• An idea that development is not as simple as a
child becoming an adult
• An emphasis on context and seeing the bigger
picture around an individual
• A recognition of the many different simple and
complex contexts around an individual

12. What these words share
• An idea that development is not as simple as a
child becoming an adult
• An emphasis on context and seeing the bigger
picture around an individual
• A recognition of the many different simple and
complex contexts around an individual
• An acknowledgment of interaction between the
individual and the contexts in which they live and
participate

13. What they differ on …

14. What they differ on …
• The theorisation of context

15. What they differ on …
• The theorisation of context
• Big picture/little picture foci
– The family
– Culture

16. What they differ on …
• The theorisation of context
• Big picture/little picture foci
– The family
– Culture
• The theorisation of the individual

17. What they differ on …
• The theorisation of context
• Big picture/little picture foci
– The family
– Culture
• The theorisation of the individual
• The focus on/or beyond childhood

18. What they differ on …
• The theorisation of context
• Big picture/little picture foci
– The family
– Culture
• The theorisation of the individual
• The focus on/or beyond childhood
• Connection to practice

19. Situating the socio-ecological

20. Situating the socio-ecological
Stage Theories
Context Theories
Behavioural Theories

21. Situating the socio-ecological
Stage Theories
Context Theories
Behavioural Theories

22. Biological Constructivist Behaviourist Social Socio-ecological
Constructivist
Progressive stages Environment Ecological contexts
The individual The individual in context
Universal ideas Recognises difference
Scientific Naturalistic observation and
experimentation phenomenological inquiry
Psychoanalytic CBT /BT Systems/multicultural
approaches /community approaches

23. Advantages and disadvantages
in socio-ecological
approaches

24. Advantages in socio-ecological
approaches

25. Advantages in socio-ecological
approaches
• Understanding of the individual

26. Advantages in socio-ecological
approaches
• Understanding of the individual
• Understanding of the contexts
that influence individuals

27. Advantages in socio-ecological
approaches
• Understanding of the individual
• Understanding of the contexts
that influence individuals
• Understanding of the bigger
picture

28. Advantages in socio-ecological
approaches
• Understanding of the individual
• Understanding of the contexts
that influence individuals
• Understanding of the bigger
picture
• Cross-cultural perspectives and
approaches

29. Advantages in socio-ecological
approaches
• Understanding of the individual
• Understanding of the contexts
that influence individuals
• Understanding of the bigger
picture
• Cross-cultural perspectives and
approaches
• Multiple points of intervention

30. Disadvantages in socio-ecological
approaches

31. Disadvantages in socio-ecological
approaches
• It is hard to apportion blame

32. Disadvantages in socio-ecological
approaches
• It is hard to apportion blame
• Sometimes too much emphasis on the
bigger picture
– Individual factors may be ignored
– The ‘man’ and you

33. Disadvantages in socio-ecological
approaches
• It is hard to apportion blame
• Sometimes too much emphasis on the
bigger picture
– Individual factors may be ignored
– The ‘man’ and you
• Interventions may be costly due to a
broader and wider focus

34. Case Study One: Graffiti in Cityside
New Zealand
Think about the following questions …

35. Focus Questions
• What sorts of systems or contexts would you
expect professionals to focus on?
• What might you expect to find in these systems?
• What examples of interventions would you
expect to see developed?
• What strengths can you identify in these
interventions?
• What disadvantages can you identify in these
interventions?

36. Case Study One: Graffiti in Cityside
New Zealand
Tom Jones was a ‘normal’ boy on all accounts
living in Smalltown, New Zealand. However, one
year he was caught by the Police de-facing
fences in Cityside. Professionals could not
ascertain the reasons for his behaviour.
Although they did note that there had been a
marked increase in youth crime in the city and
surrounding towns.
Later, in the Family Group Conference, it was
decided that a systematic (contextual) review of
Tom’s life needed to be taken and, if needed, a
community-based intervention set in place.

37. Case Study One: Graffiti in Cityside
New Zealand
Here’s what happened …

38. The Resolution
• The assessment
– Dysfunction in the family
– Lack of youth-based activities in Smalltown
– Expectation that youth would go to Cityside to
socialise at night and in the weekend
– Conflict between Smalltown and Cityside youth
• The intervention
– Family counselling
– The establishment of a youth sports centre

39. Case Study 2: Domestic Abuse and
the National Game
Here’s your next set of
questions …

40. Focus Questions
• What contexts are blamed in
this example?
• What would need to happen
to address this problem?
• What pragmatic problems
exist for practitioners and
those working with these
families?

41. Case Study 2: Domestic Abuse and
the National Game
Over the last few years it
has come to the
attention of Police and
the media that rates of
domestic abuse rise
when the All Blacks, or
the local rugby team,
lose a game of rugby

42. So What Does this all Mean?

43. Rather than letting the approach
drive the response,
let the situation drive the approach
and response

44. But Know …
• Socio-ecological approaches …
– Suit a variety of helping and
service professions
– Are evident in many community
based interventions
– Are one tool that if used well can
make substantial differences for
individuals, families, and
communities

45. Two Socio-Ecological Models

46. Bronfenbrenner: Ecologies and
Developmental Systems

47. Introducing Urie Bronfenbrenner
• Born in Russia, raised in
the United States
• American developmental
theorist
• Introduced ecological
systems into human
development
• Has been used in Family
Interventions and
Therapies
http://146.186.181.213/424/outlines.htm

48. The Socio-Ecological Model
Ethnicity Sex
The Individual Health
Age

49. The Picture Gets Larger …
Health Providers
Peer Group School/
Workplace
Church/
Family Clubs
Microsystem

50. And Larger …
Meetings Peer Group
School/ Gossip
Workplace Family
Health Providers
Family Peer Group
Shared Mesosystem General Contact
Experiences

51. And Larger …
Social Services
Extended
Neighbourhood
Mass Media
Health Providers
Other
Exosystem People’s
Microsystems

52. And Larger …
Societal Attitudes Societal Beliefs
Culture
Global Macrosystem

53. And Larger … Chronosystem
Historical
Context
Transitions

54. Until …

55. The Socio-Ecological Model

56. The Socio-Ecological Model
• Places the individual in a socio-ecological context
which becomes more complex as the individual
develops

57. The Socio-Ecological Model
• Places the individual in a socio-ecological context
which becomes more complex as the individual
develops
• Stresses interaction

58. The Socio-Ecological Model
• Places the individual in a socio-ecological context
which becomes more complex as the individual
develops
• Stresses interaction
• Bi-directional relationships

59. The Socio-Ecological Model
• Places the individual in a socio-ecological context
which becomes more complex as the individual
develops
• Stresses interaction
• Bi-directional relationships
• Clear differences between biological and socio-
cultural dimensions ..
– Sex/gender
– Race/ethnicity

60. The Socio-Ecological Model
• Places the individual in a socio-ecological context
which becomes more complex as the individual
develops
• Stresses interaction
• Bi-directional relationships
• Clear differences between biological and socio-
cultural dimensions ..
– Sex/gender
– Race/ethnicity
• Individual’s perception verses the external
environment

61. The Socio-Ecological Model
• Places the individual in a socio-ecological context
which becomes more complex as the individual
develops
• Stresses interaction
• Bi-directional relationships
• Clear differences between biological and socio-
cultural dimensions ..
– Sex/gender
– Race/ethnicity
• Individual’s perception verses the external
environment
• Tends to focus on the development of the child in a
family

62. Socio-Ecological Theory and
Practice

63. Socio-Ecological Theory and
Practice
• Importance of strong interactions and
relationships in the microsystem

64. Socio-Ecological Theory and
Practice
• Importance of strong interactions and
relationships in the microsystem
• Breakdowns in the microsystem early in life
can impact relationships later

65. Socio-Ecological Theory and
Practice
• Importance of strong interactions and
relationships in the microsystem
• Breakdowns in the microsystem early in life
can impact relationships later
• Need to focus interventions at the family and
at the interactions the family has with other
organisations

66. Socio-Ecological Theory and
Practice
• Importance of strong interactions and
relationships in the microsystem
• Breakdowns in the microsystem early in life
can impact relationships later
• Need to focus interventions at the family and
at the interactions the family has with other
organisations
• Recognise the different and potential
relationships of services and families

67. Case Study: The World of Kylie Mole
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Comedy_Company

68. Der Dairy
Got a bra! It is white and it has got lace and gue3ss wot? am
a 34 aa. I coodn’t believe it! I just can’t wait to go to
school tomorrow! I hope someone spreads it round. This si
the most excellent day of my life so far!!!! I just rang Zoe
and told her about my bra and she was soo excited! She is
gunna ring Sarah, who is gunna ring Laura. This is so
exciting. And guess wot? There is this boy at my school
and I think he is sooooo cute. (His name is Svongo. His
brother is cute too.) All the girls rooly like him.
Neighbours was soo good tonight. I can’t wait to see wot
happens tomorrow.
1980s
(Mole, 1988, p.18)

69. Can you work out what systems are
identified in the circles and lines
here ….
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Comedy_Company

70. Der Dairy
Got a bra! It is white and it has got lace and gue3ss wot? am
a 34 aa. I coodn’t believe it! I just can’t wait to go to
school tomorrow! I hope someone spreads it round. This si
the most excellent day of my life so far!!!! I just rang Zoe
and told her about my bra and she was soo excited! She is
gunna ring Sarah, who is gunna ring Laura. This is so
exciting. And guess wot? There is this boy at my school
and I think he is sooooo cute. (His name is Svongo. His
brother is cute too.) All the girls rooly like him.
Neighbours was soo good tonight. I can’t wait to see wot
happens tomorrow.
1980s
(Mole, 1988, p.18)

71. Problems with Socio-Ecological
Theory

72. Problems with Socio-Ecological
Theory
• Too compartmentalised

73. Problems with Socio-Ecological
Theory
• Too compartmentalised
• Still focuses on the individual so may
not be applicable to other cultures and
social groups

74. Problems with Socio-Ecological
Theory
• Too compartmentalised
• Still focuses on the individual so may
not be applicable to other cultures and
social groups
• Very little application outside of the
school or outside of childhood

75. Problems with Socio-Ecological
Theory
• Too compartmentalised
• Still focuses on the individual so may
not be applicable to other cultures and
social groups
• Very little application outside of the
school or outside of childhood
• Overemphasis on micro factors when
more explanation should be given to
macro factors

76. Problems with Socio-Ecological
Theory
• Too compartmentalised
• Still focuses on the individual so may
not be applicable to other cultures and
social groups
• Very little application outside of the
school or outside of childhood
• Overemphasis on micro factors when
more explanation should be given to
macro factors
• Overemphasis on context to the risk of
ignoring individual factors

77. Harms: Acknowledging the
Individual – A Multidimensional
approach

78. Introducing Louise Harms
• Australian Researcher
• Teaches in a social
work programme at
the University of
Melbourne
• Specialises in trauma,
risk, and resilience
• Inner and outer
dimensions to
development
http://www.socialwork.unimelb.edu.au/aboutus/
contactus/harms.html

79. The Multi-Dimensional Model
The Inner World
Biological
Spiritual
Purpose
Meaning Psychological
Cognitive
Emotional

80. The Multi-Dimensional Framework

81. Understanding the Outer World
• Harms (p.8) encourages
us to …
– Look at the relationships an
individual is in
– Look at how the networking
of relationships
– Examine the wider
structural influences on a
person’s development
– Examine cultural influences
on an individual

82. The influence of time

83. The influence of time
• The creation of personal biographies
– Over time we develop our own stories of our
world, our reality, and ourselves
– We continue to apply these life stories – they
become our ways of coping

84. The influence of time
• The creation of personal biographies
– Over time we develop our own stories of our
world, our reality, and ourselves
– We continue to apply these life stories – they
become our ways of coping
• The creation of social biographies
– The stories of our generation

85. The influence of time
• The creation of personal biographies
– Over time we develop our own stories of our
world, our reality, and ourselves
– We continue to apply these life stories – they
become our ways of coping
• The creation of social biographies
– The stories of our generation
• The anticipation of the future

86. Biographies in Action
• Adaptation and coping means …
– Allowing ourselves to sit within a “steady state”
(p.14) – to keep a balance
– “Our ability to survive any situation” (Marris,
cited in Harms, 2005, p.15) – to overcome
– Involving our inner (personal) and outer
(contextual) developmental factors
– About resilience and survival

87. Strengths of a Multidimensional
Approach

88. Strengths of a Multidimensional
Approach
• More than an ecological approach
– Recognises the individual

89. Strengths of a Multidimensional
Approach
• More than an ecological approach
– Recognises the individual
• Acknowledges a spiritual dimension

90. Strengths of a Multidimensional
Approach
• More than an ecological approach
– Recognises the individual
• Acknowledges a spiritual dimension
• Allows a problem to be seen from a variety
of dimensions

91. Strengths of a Multidimensional
Approach
• More than an ecological approach
– Recognises the individual
• Acknowledges a spiritual dimension
• Allows a problem to be seen from a variety
of dimensions
• Also means that programmes/interventions
must be multi-dimensional

92. Case Study: The World of Kylie Mole
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Comedy_Company

93. Now some … Focus Questions
• What relationships are being described here?
• What wider network/structure are they a part of?
• How is Kylie adapting and coping with the
relationships around her?
• What signs are there of a personal biography?
• How does the story involve inner and outer
factors?
• How is this a story of resilence and survival?

94. Der Dairy
I was late again. Sir arksed me why and I said my
grandmother had died, and he went, ‘Kylie, your
grandmother has already died three times this term.’ And
I went, ‘Yeah, but she got better the last time.’ But I don’t
think he believed me. Oh well.
Had the biggest bitch fight with Amanda. She started
picking on me out of the blue, so I go to her, ‘Don’t, you
pig!’ And she goes, ‘ Oh, thanks for the compliment. That
stands for Pretty Intelligent Girl.’ And I went, ‘No it
doesn’t it stands for Prehistoric Idiotic Guts.’ And then
she just punches me…
PPPS. Today at school I talked to Venessa, and she has rooly
changed. She is so nice now. She reckons she only used
to be horrible cos she thought I hated here, and I only used
to be horrible cos I thought she hated me! Isn’t that dumb?
But kids are like that. They can be so stupid. But we are
so much older now. I arksed her over for next weekend.
(Mole, 1988, p.56-57)

95. Problems with the Multi-
dimensional approach

96. Problems with the Multi-
dimensional approach
• There are times when practitioners need to focus
on an immediate problem as it is presented – this
may involve highly traditional approaches

97. Problems with the Multi-
dimensional approach
• There are times when practitioners need to focus
on an immediate problem as it is presented – this
may involve highly traditional approaches
• Downplays the importance of traditional
interventions and the skills that these
interventions can promote

98. Problems with the Multi-
dimensional approach
• There are times when practitioners need to focus
on an immediate problem as it is presented – this
may involve highly traditional approaches
• Downplays the importance of traditional
interventions and the skills that these
interventions can promote
• Like Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory, there is
a risk of making a problem too big to fix

102. What about Dr. Phil?
http://drphil.com/shows/page/bio/

103. Dr. Phil – A Mult-Dimensional
Television Therapist

104. Dr. Phil – A Mult-Dimensional
Television Therapist
• An American phenomenon

105. Dr. Phil – A Mult-Dimensional
Television Therapist
• An American phenomenon
• Focuses on adapting and coping
– Creating successful life biographies

106. Dr. Phil – A Mult-Dimensional
Television Therapist
• An American phenomenon
• Focuses on adapting and coping
– Creating successful life biographies
• As a therapist Dr. Phil focuses on the inner
world and, at an outer world level,
relational and social dimension
• But there’s more to Dr. Phil

107. http://images.match.com/match/mfb/
marketing/3481_biggerPhil.jpg

108. Dr. Phil

109. Dr. Phil
• Focuses on the social, and relational
dimensions in our inner world

110. Dr. Phil
• Focuses on the social, and relational
dimensions in our inner world
• Situated within structural, cultural, and time
dimensions

111. Dr. Phil
• Focuses on the social, and relational
dimensions in our inner world
• Situated within structural, cultural, and time
dimensions
• Does not just impact the lives and personal
biographies of individuals but the ideas,
beliefs, and social biographies of a nation

112. Where do we stand now?

113. Where do we stand now?
• The practices of Dr. Phil fit within a multi-
dimensional and socio-ecological
framework

114. Where do we stand now?
• The practices of Dr. Phil fit within a multi-
dimensional and socio-ecological
framework
• Socio-ecological frameworks are about
recognising the contexts that surrounds
individuals

115. Where do we stand now?
• The practices of Dr. Phil fit within a multi-
dimensional and socio-ecological
framework
• Socio-ecological frameworks are about
recognising the contexts that surrounds
individuals
• Looking at personal and social biographies
can help us understand and analyse socio-
ecological contexts

116. Where are we going …
• Over the next few weeks we will
– Look deeper into the contexts that surround
individuals
– Look at some socio-ecological examples of
practice
– Use ideas of theory and practice to look at
what is happening at various stages in the life-
span