Historical Origins and Conceptual Foundations of Social Ecology

Abstract

This chapter traces the emergence of bioecology during the 1800s to the subsequent development of an ecological perspective in several realms of behavioral, social, environmental, and public health research. Diverse “schools” of ecological thought are described and compared, including The Chicago School and Sociocultural School of human ecology ; ecological psychology ; the ecology of human development ; social ecological analyses of public health ; and more recent applications of social ecological theorizing to the study of society–nature relationships and global sustainability . These diverse strands of ecological research offer the foundations for establishing a more integrative transdisciplinary approach to social ecology as outlined in later chapters.