Ecological Model Essay

Is it better to grow up rich or poor? For many, the instinctual answer would seem to be rich; however, as noted on page 72 in the Pearson textbook, “Infant, Children, and Adolescents”, research has found that a child growing up in an affluent lifestyle start to show anxiety, depression, or even substance abuse problems by the seventh grade. These adjustment problems that affluent children are facing seem to suggest that developing in a poor household may be better (Berk, 2012, p. 72). However, before one jumps to that conclusion, one should study in order to understand the evidence that show the negative outcomes that might exist growing up in an affluent household. In order to understand the finding that seventh graders who grow up in an affluent family experience anxiety, substance abuse, and depression problems, one should become acquainted with and understand the ecological model. The ecological model, created by Urie Bronfenbrenner, breaks down the complex factors that may attribute to “contextual influences on [a] children’s development” (Berk, 2012, p. 25). In other words, the ecological model believes that …show more content…
One major factor is the parent or parent’s workplace. Though at a first glance an affluent parent’s workplace does not appear to negatively affect the child, it certainly can. One can argue that a successful parent’s job—in which they create a sufficient amount of money—is highly stressful. The parent or parents have many high responsibilities, which of course are accompanied by stress. These stresses can unintentionally be passed onto their child. A parent’s own work related issues could cause them to physically or verbally abuse the child or bring the negative aspects of the work environment home. This undisputedly will cause a child who is going through development to be negatively