A workshop "A Social Ecological Framework for Exploring Gender, Sexuality and Health"
A workshop entitled "A Social Ecological Framework for Exploring Gender, Sexuality and Health" was conducted on December 26, 2011 at the Que Huong 4 Hotel by the Center for Creative Initiatives in Health and Population (CCIHP). The workshop focused on Dr. Urie Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Theory of Development- a sociocultural view of development (1917 - 2005). He was a renowned Russian-born American psychologist, known for his work in child development. It is a theory that views an individual’s development within the social context of five environmental systems, namely the: Microsystem, Mesosystem, Exosystem, Macrosystem, and Chronosystem all of which contribute to forming one’s development starting at childhood.
The workshop used Dr.
Bronfenbrenner's ecological theory as a framework for exploring more in-depth
gender and sexuality, and relationships between individuals, family, community,
state; this also included the application of its approach to programs and
policies. For example, the concept of "self", “identity”,
"masculine" and "feminine" are never limited to an
individual level but relate to interactions at various levels (e.g.,
interaction of individuals with their family milieu and larger environments of
a peer group, school, community; it also includes their ideology, cultural
values and beliefs). In other words, an individual is influenced by numerous
variables both within one’s immediate proximity such as family and
school, peers, and within one’s broader more distant social settings such
as legal services, mass media, neighbors; the individual is also influenced by
attitude and ideology of a culture.
Professor Tan reviewed the five
levels of Dr. Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory previously described.
According to Professor Tan, Dr. Bronfenbrenner does not discuss the level of
individual psychology, though many psychologists have utilized the theory to
help individuals change their behavior. Professor Tan also has indicated that
medical psychologists have recognized that social factors and social
conventions such as peer groups and the concept of "body" are notions
that should be explored in depth and placed in the relationship of the various
layers of society. These notions should be used differently with theoretical
frameworks to analyze self-esteem, self-efficacy, and locus of control.
At the Microsystem level in Dr.
Bronfenbrenner's framework, the individual is not viewed as a passive
recipient, rather as an active agent interacting with family, friends, school,
neighborhood, religious organizations, health services, etc., in their
environment. Researchers need to find out more about the relationship
between parent and child, the relationship of spouses, or the notion of a
partner who is a prostitute or sex worker and how this perception affects the
relationships and the degree of violence between partners in their
relationships. This level has been commonly used in socio-cultural
research.
At the Mesosystem level in Dr.
Bronfenbrenner's framework, emphasis is placed on relationships between
Microsystems. Researchers need to study more relationships between family
experiences and school experiences, between school and religious organizations,
and between experience in a family context and peer relationship. For example,
if parents rejected their children, these children may have difficulty in
developing positive relationships with teachers. What do these experiences mean
for policy makers and for establishing programs on sex education, reproductive
health, and relationships within the system?. For this reason we need to
observe the behavior in various settings to portray the complete picture of
whom one is in order to understand an individual’s development.
At the Exosystem level (e.g,
workplaces, parks, recreation centers, policy) in Dr. Bronfenbrenner's
framework, influences often go beyond an individual. If the individual is
constantly being influenced by negative elements in those contexts, his/her
relations with family members will become problematic. Another example,
these days, is that young people in the labor market often receive high wages
and are able to work independently; however, they appear not to achieve
self-sufficiency, that is, they may not have faith in themselves or they may be
more likely to give up when they encounter obstacles. Dr. Tan suggested that
researchers need to find out more about the experiences of young people
relative to work, of the vulnerable (e.g, both women and the disabled), or
about cultural modification of immigrant groups like Vietnamese in the U.S.
At the Macrosystem level, Dr.
Bronfenbrenner (1986, 1995, 2000; Bronfenbrenner & Moris, 1998) refers to
cultural issues in the environment, such as behavior patterns, beliefs, and all
other elements of a cultural group that is transferred from generation to
generation. Researchers need to study what ideological concepts shape gender
and sexuality, inequality in sexuality and other issues associated with social
justice. There are problems that need to be addressed further such as including
sexual nationalism (application of nationalistic rhetoric and ideology to
gender and sexuality), civil rights and position, ideology of a nation, the
state's role in a political economy, and the impact of media on youth.
Finally, the Chronosystem involves
the patterning of environmental events and transitions over the course of an
individual’s life, particularly significant events, transitional periods, as
well as socio-historical contexts that one has undergone. For example, to
understand the stages of human development, we need to understand the
biological aspects of sexuality throughout one’s life from childhood to young
adulthood. Researchers need to question the female/male binary model and
analyze it in relation to government policies and programs.
To help the participants make sense
of the entire theoretical model, Professor Tan summarized the five systems by
showing us a diagram of Dr. Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Theory of Development.
He also asked the attendees to express any final thoughts, questions, or
concerns that they may have. Some in the audience expressed their interest in
using the model for future research while others said that this approach seemed
applicable to other inquiries such as how the role of history affects the
ideology of the Vietnamese government or the contemporary ideology of the
youth. The workshop ended fairly late, however, the attendees were happy and
grateful to Professor Tan for contributing his precious time and sharing his
knowledge with everyone in the audience. We expressed our profound gratitude to
him and are looking forward to his upcoming presentation next year.
By Doan Thi Ngoc
Link: A Social Ecological Framework for Exploring Gender,
Sexuality and Health in Vietnam
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