Inherited and Environmental Influences on Development Essay

Inherited and Environmental Influences on Development - Essay Example According to the findings, Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Model (1979) explains that the behavior and development of an individual is an interplay of the individual’s biological and personality factors, his environment and the society and culture he was born into. Bronfenbrenner also claims that effects of interactions between the individual and his environment are two-directional or characterized by reciprocity. This means that while a child’s development is influenced and molded by his family, school and peers, he likewise influences and molds the behavior of others. The growing child moves through five systems that inter-relate and affect his development. The most basic of which is the microsystem, where direct contacts between the child and his immediate surroundings result in behaviors such as dependence or independence and cooperation or competition. An example of this is the home base of the child and his relationship with his family. The pure culture of the society this family lives in greatly influences how this family lives and how the child imbibes the culture as he expresses it in his developing personality. The mesosystem comprises the linkages and processes that take place between two or more settings with the child in common. A perfect example is how learning in school is supported by follow up lessons in the home. The third level comprising linkages and processes taking place between two or more settings is the exosystem. This includes at least one setting that does not directly involve the child but still influences the processes within the immediate setting of the child. An example is the parent’s occupation. The workplace of this parent does not contain the child, but processes at work may affect his development such as the hours spent there by the parent may affect the parent-child bond. The fourth system is the macrosystem which includes the customs, values, and laws considered important in the child’s culture and u pbringing. A child from another culture may celebrate special customs and traditions from his culture apart from the special occasions celebrated in his host country. Lastly, the chronosystem in Bronfenbrenner's Ecological model refers to the time that transpires as the child relates in his various environments. An example is a change that happens to the child while he grows up moving from one system to another, like the westernization of the values of a child originally from an Asian culture. This ecological model implies that the interplay and quality of the various systems and environments of the child will play different roles in influencing his development. Likewise, whatever comes out of that development will affect the various environments the child belongs to. For instance, the free expression of his culture may lead to environments being more accepting of it.