Ecological Perspective Paper

Ecological Perspective
Ecological perspective is concerned with “an adaptive, evolutionary view of human beings in constant interchange with all elements of their environment” (Germain & Gitterman,1976). The idea that the person and environment are inseparable and must be considered jointly is the theory’s primary assumption (Robbins et al., 2012, pg 33).
Goodness of Fit
People strive for goodness of fit with their environment, it enables people and their environment to reciprocally adapt to one another. An assumption is that people and their environment constantly change and shape one another (Robbins et al., 2012, pg 33). Emma’s mother seeking help and by the urging of the pastor to try and save her marriage is an example of goodness of

fit. Marital problems over the years and the father sporadically attending the psychotherapies causes Emma’s mother to be stressed. She adapted to the emotional and spiritual support of the priest, but later realized that the marriage has taken its toll.
Exploitative Power
Exploitative power involves the inflictions of injustice and suffering on powerless group by those in power (Robbins et al., 2012, pg 35). The school staff member that sexually abused Emma exploited their power, Emma is a young child which makes her vulnerable and powerless. The staff member knew that Emma didn’t understand what was happening to her at the time and they used that as their advantage and abused her and another child.
Transactions
The development of a person personality is a product of transactions, the concept suggest that bidirectional and cyclic relationship exist between the client and the environment (Pardeck, 1988). Emma’s life experiences have been maladaptive, she has been through sexual abuse and she is also witnessing her parents going through a bitter divorce these could be causes to Emma’s yelling, talking back and tantrums.