What are "Primary Ecological Relationships?"
We all live within a number of different social networks, which essentially equate to what the social scientist Brofenbrenner considered to be “ecological systems.” Our interactions with our families and with our work associates are two chief components of the ecological system closest to us, aka the “microsystem” within which we all function. For those still enrolled in school, the interactions with our teachers and peers represent yet another.
At a broader level, we also interact with organizations and institutions. These bodies, it can be said, place boundaries on how we conduct our lives. Government institutions would be one, as would religious organizations. Those act at societal level and, as such, can be regarded as part of the “macrosystem.”
(There are other levels besides the microsystem and the macrosystem, but it is sufficient for the purpose of this explanation of primary ecological relationships to only examine those two.)
Of all of those interactions and the character of the relationships within your microsystem and your macrosystem, there are three relationships that are foundational, or “primary.” That is to say, each of us as individuals normally have a significant influence on the quality of each of these relationships, and furthermore, these are relationships that are consequential to practically every other relationship and interaction in our lives.
If these relationships are mature, responsible, and healthy, they ripple outward to the stability and enhancement of others’ lives. Concurrently, to the degree that they are immature, irresponsible, and unhealthy, they ripple outward to the detriment of others’ lives.
Spouse/Spouse Relationships
Marriage relationships are primary because the preponderance
of family social science research affirms a broad array of
benefits to the spouses when they maintain a good one, and more
significantly, benefits to their children—in terms of their
academic and vocational achievement, in terms of physical and
mental health, in terms of their tendency to avoid risky and
criminal behaviors, and in terms of their own future marital
success.
Employee/Employer Relationships
Good employee-employer relationships make work life more
fulfilling for the employee that has implications on
relationships at home as well. Simultaneously, those same good
relationships contribute to better productivity for the
employer. And, at a macro level, this conveys benefits to the
health of our families and our economy.
Citizen/Public Servant
(Government) Relationships
Citizens desire to elect and support good public servants.
Public servants desire to be responsive, efficient, and
productive toward their constituents. When citizens and
government work toward and achieve better relationships,
citizens feel greater allegiance and faith in their system of
government, while government functions better as a consequence
of having increased and more intelligent input from its
citizenry.
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