ecological systems theory

an evolving body of theory and research concerned with the processes and conditions that govern the course of human development in the actual environments in which human beings live. Originally focused on the environment as a context for child development (in terms of nested systems ranging from micro- to macro-), the theory is now known as the bioecological model, denoting a broader conception of human development as a process that is affected, across the lifespan and across successive generations, by both environmental context and individual biopsychological characteristics. See also chronosystem; ecosystemic approach; exosystem; macrosystem; mesosystem. [originally conceptualized by Urie Bronfenbrenner]

Browse dictionary by letter

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Psychology term of the day

July 27th 2024

primary insomnia

in DSM–IV–TR, a sleep disorder characterized by difficulty in initiating or maintaining a restorative sleep to a degree in which the severity and persistence of the sleep disturbance causes clinically significant distress, impairment in a significant area of functioning, or both. The disorder is not caused by a general medical condition or the effects of a substance and is not exclusively an aspect of another sleep disorder or mental disorder. It is termed insomnia disorder in DSM–5. See dyssomnia. Compare primary hypersomnia.