What Is the Social Ecological Model?

This essay aims to explore the social ecological model, what it is, how it works, and how practitioners who work with children, young people and families who live in poverty, can improve their quality of life and well-being by using additional support. This essay will also try to define what practitioner’s regard as well-being due to being influenced by social constructions and how living in poverty and the lack of being able to satisfy basic needs can influence the future lives of children and young people, and how certain groups of families have a stigma attached due to assumptions of practitioner’s following guidelines.
The social ecological model made an impact on society, and was introduced by psychologist, Urie Bronfenbrenner (1979), who believed that child development is affected by wide range of factors surrounding the child. The model represents four structured environments, society, community, family and the child. So when working with an individual, knowledge and understanding of the bigger picture is an important factor when trying to understand their diverse complex lives. ().
The Bronfenbrenner theory is likened to a spider’s web, Russian doll, or concentric rings, which all have the same meaning, looking holistically at the individuals life, layer upon layer each representing the different level with the child in the centre (). It identifies systems that influence the development of the individual such as, micro level which is the immediate influences of the child or young person such as family members and macro level, which are the outer influences such as community and society. It emphasizes environmental factors as playing the major role to development. This acknowledges issues such as poverty and the effect they can have on families. The model can be used to understand analyse and assess people's circumstances. It can identify risk and protective factors so interventions can be put into place and built on to strengthen people's positions and...