Overview of Human Development and Behavior in social environment- a multidimenstional framework

• -integrating wide range of influences in assessment of client development and behavior at all levels:
• 1. individual
• 2. family
• 3. group
• 4. organizational
• 5. community
• 6.  societal.
• -Examines client's appraisals of these influences and reactions to them in terms of:
• 1. physiology
• 2. emotion
• 3. cognition
• 4. behavior

focuses on biophysical, psychological and social dimensions

interacting biophysical, psychological and social dimensions

• Biophysical growth and development from prenatal to old age

psychological functions that influence a person's ability to satisfy his needs: 1. early emotional bonding, 2. basic temperament, 3. cognitive development, 4. information processing, 5.communication, 6. personality, 7. identity, 8. self concept, 9. emotions and attitudes, 10. social regulation, 11. moral development

Various groups a person interacts with over time: family, 2. social supports, 3. communities, 4. organizations, 5. social institutions (church, school, health care, welfare services),6. gender, 7. multicultural considerations

behavior is result of interactions between a person and his envrionment

biological, psychological and social systems have interacted in leading up to how things are currently

biological, psychological and social systems are presently interacting to influence how things are currently

• how much hereditary and environmental factors are responsible for the diversity in the development of human characteristics and behavior
• vs.
• currently viewed as combo of genetics and environment and focuses on :
• relative contributions and how they interact to produce behavior

believe development is a biloical process that occurs automatically in predictable, sequential stages over time

believe human development and behavior result of environmental factors

genetic endowment

• traits influenced by multiple genes
• ex. height, intelligence, personality

extent to which phenotype varies within a group of people as the result of differences in genotype

genetic inheritance

• the observed characteristics 
• attributed to combo of heredity and environment

• the way environment can influence development over the lifespan
• variations in environment can affect person's: 1. cognitive and social functioning, 2. personality, 3.physical and mental health regardless of heredity.
• ex. genetically predisposed to schizophrenia but doesn't get it

• how genetics and environment interact to produce behavior
• Freud, Piaget and Kohlberg

• heredity: critical during early stages of development
• environmental factors: later stages, people get older and behavior is result of environmental influences

• depending on cultural context, the way an event is experienced and interpreted, the same factors will have different effects on development
• Bronfenbrenner and Erikson

• specific period of time when an organism is particularly sensitive to a certain stimuli that can have either a positive or negative impact on development.
• first described by ethologists who found that organisms must be exposed to particular environmental stimuli in order for a behavior to develop
• several critical periods for physical development but not for behavior

• longer and more flexible than critical periods, not tied to age or maturational stage
• there are sensitive periods for human behavior: attachment and language

• person in environment theory
• disproven early theory of development
• believed that change only occurred during first half of life and capacity shrinks over time

ability to respond effectively to ongoing biological, psychological and social demands

capacity to adapt and succeed in changing environments

• affected by biological/genetic factors: skills, beliefs, values and social expectation that need to change in response to environmental demands and cultural traditions and practices.
• can improve capacity by improving behavioral competence in adapting to bio,pscho, social demands or improving environment

• human development involves interactions between individual and context
• context has 4 nested levels:
• microsystem
• mesosystem
• exosystem
• macrosystem

• bronfenbrenner's ecological model
• person's immediate environment:
• face to face relationships with home, school, work, neighbors
• relationships with parents, siblings, peers, teachers, coworkers

• bronfenbrenner's ecological model
• interactions between componenets of microsystem
• ex. influence of family factors on child's behavior at school

• bronfenbrenner's ecological model
• broader environment affecting person's immediate environment
• larger social entities that influence the personal system even though they are not directly involved with them
• ex. for a child: parent's work, school board, mass media

• bronfenbrenner's ecological model
• overarching environmental influences: cultural beliefs and practices, economic conditions, political ideologies

study of relationship between organism and its environment

combo of systems theory and ecology

• ecosystems perspective
• C.B. Germain
• individual and his environment are in constant circular exchanges, reciprocally shaping and influencing over time

• ecosystems perspective
• Gordon (1969)
• transactions between person 's coping patterns and qualities in environment

expressing a relationship between person and environment, not just person or just environment

• central concept in ecology
• goodness of fit with his environment
• adaptive balance of individual's rights, needs, capacities and goals with physical and social environment

• ecological concept
• active efforts to make physiological or psychological changes to fit the demands/opportunities of his environment 
• or
• change enviornment to meet his needs, rights and goals
• continuous process

• either positive or negative person-environment relationship
• positive" person feels it's a challenge
• negative: person feels unable to cope with it

physiological, psychological and behavioral response due to stress

problem solving, managing negative feelings and maintaining self esteem

• human relatedness
• competence
• self direction
• identity and self esteem

• ecosystems concept
• individual or group's concept in social structure related to power and oppression
• shaped by set of rights

• ecosystems concept
• settings where an organism is found
• should support social setting that suits lifestyle
• when it doesn't can produce feelings of isolation and despair

• 1. problems are viewed in environmental context
• 2. individuals, groups, orgs are always interacting with each other and other systems in environment
• 3. problem system- human and environmental setting. every problem system is unique bc its subsystems have its own interactions and characteristics
• 4. individuals need adequate environmental resource and positive transactions with environment ino order to accomplish important developmental tasks and fill needs
• 5. goal of coping efforts: adaptive person-environment fit
• 6. must account for all systems (individual, interpersonal, communal/societal, physical environment) involved since humans and environments mutually affect each other.
• 7. need to help people find ways of meeting needs by addressing deficits in coping strategies, resources by connecting them to resources or improving capacity.

• B=f(P,E) (behavior is function of person and environment)
• field: lifespace is total enviornment
• behavior is movement through regions of life space
• regions have positive valence or negative valence
• valence is developed as person and environment begin to change
• 3 motivational conflicts

• approach-approach: person attracted to two equally desirable goals
• ex. choosing between two good jobs
• avoidance-avoidance: choosing between two bad choices
• ex. being laid off or choosing lower paying job
• approach-avoidance: goal has both positive and negative aspects
• ex.decing to accept a promotion that pays more but has more stress

hazards to person or environment that increase the likelihood of a problem

promote personal competence and successful development

function adaptively despite exposure to risks

• werner and smith: positive outcomes for high risk babies associated with: 1. easy temperament, 2. high degree of social responsivity, 3. good communication skills, 4. consistent eating and sleeping patterns, 5. stable support from caregiver.
• negative effects associated with poverty, family instability and maternal health problems
• Rutter (1985): Rutter's indicators (family risk factors):1. severe marital discord, 2. low ses, 3. overcrowding/large family size, 4. parental criminality, 5. maternal psychopathology, 6. child placed outside of home.
• Masten (2001) Adolescent stress resistance: 1. positive and nurturant relationships, 2. easy temperament and positive outlook on future, 3. internal locus of control, 4. good self regulation, 5. active coping style, 6. good social skills and support, 7. good cognitive skills, 8. outside activities and hobbies.