IntroductionHuman ecology theory is unique in its focus on humans as both biological organisms and social beings in interaction with their environment, t In this theory the family is considered to be an energy transformation system that is interdependent with its natural physical-biological, human-built, and social-cultural milieu. Emphasis is given to the creation, use, and management of resources for creative adaptation, human development, and sustainability of environments.
Origins and Initial Sociocultural MilieuAn ecological perspective on the family emerged in the latter part of the nineteenth cen1Family ecology theory is used in this chapter to denote a delimitation of human ecology theory with specific application to the family. Human ecology theory is more inclusive and can focus on a range of human populations. tury, a period of social reform, urbanization, industrialization, expansion of public education, and concern about the health and welfare of families. It reemerged in the 1960s with the increased awareness of the interdependence of human actions and environmental quality and with the interest in viewing phenomena from holistic and systems perspectives.Ecological ideas are implicit in works of early thinkers like Plato and Aristotle in their conception of processes of growth and development and in their observations on the relationship of population size to the structure and stability of environments (Duncan, 1965). However, it was not until the nineteenth century that the concept of ecology emerged and became part of the sciences. This was when Darwin's evolutionary theory came into being, a period of growth in the natural sciences and the beginning of the social sciences. The word ecology is credited to Ernest Haeckel, a German zoologist and early proponent of the theory of evolution. In 1869, Haeckel asserted that the individual was a product of cooperation between the environment and organismal heredity and proposed that a science be developed to study organisms in their environment. By 1873, Haeckel proposed the name "oekologie" for the new science. The word has its origins in the Greek root, oik for house or living place. Ecology was defined as the study of the interrelationships between organisms or life and the environment, both organic and inorganic. It rested on the assumption that life and environment are inseparable parts of a greater whole.
419
PART VI 9 FAMILY THEORIES AND METHODS EMERGING DURING 1960-1980 Historical Development of the TheoryDuring the same period that Haeckel was proposing an ecological science, an American woman, Ellen Swallow Richards, was also proposing a science of the environment focused on home and family. Richards was the first woman admitted to and to receive a degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (in chemistry) and the first woman faculty member of any science school in the United States. Her studies of air circulation, water quality, sanitation, nutrition, and foods helped her see the close connection between the behavior and health of peo...
