Bronfenbrenner's Theoretical Framework Challenged Deficit Perspective

Bronfenbrenner’s theoretical framework challenged deficit perspectives. The author demonstrated that a range of inter-related factors may impact on an individual across different systems at any given time (e.g., microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem and macrosystem). Ecological systems theory emphasises the interaction between more proximal individual factors (e.g., biology, personality), immediate environment (e.g., family, school, peer group), wider environment (e.g., children’s services, socio-political factors, industry) and more distal socio-cultural factors (e.g., cultural ideologies).
The theory asserts that an individual’s development must be understood through careful consideration of the many factors across systems that contribute to, …show more content…
Moore (2008) suggested services became more parent-focused as a result of ecological systems theory. Subsequently the needs of other members of the family system (e.g., siblings), began to be recognised. Also, the impact of more distal factors (e.g.., school, socio-economic status, religion) began to be considered. This enabled practitioners to gain an informed appreciation of a child’s ‘ecocultural niche’ (Bernheimer & Weisner, …show more content…
At the same time a sibling's experience of having a brother or sister with Autism will also be influenced by the various interacting systems, for instance, the support available to the sibling and the reactions from others in the micro-, exo- and macrosystems. The bio-ecological framework correlates well with the interpretive/constructivist paradigm, as it aims to understand how different interacting systems influence the individual's development and experiences and therefore also recognises that each individual's reality is unique and is influenced by their specific context. The importance of taking the individual's context into consideration was shown in a study by Macks and Reeve (2007) in which they compared the psychosocial and emotional adjustment of siblings of children with Autism to that of siblings of non-disabled children. They found that the presence of Autism in the family appears to enhance the psychosocial and emotional development of non-disabled siblings when demographic risk factors such as financial strain are limited. On the contrary, if demographic risk factors increase, the presence of Autism seems to have an increasingly unfavourable impact on