"Conceptual Social Ecology" was assembled after Social Ecology at UCI celebrated its first 25 years of existence, and embarked upon its second 25 years. In an electronic format, "Conceptual Social Ecology" presents a number of facets of Social Ecology: its current definition and basic assumptions, its founding scientific presentations, its evolution as an organizational unit within the University of California, Irvine, and its approach to research on contemporary problems of the social and physical environments.

  The principal conceptual authors of Social Ecology's original intellectual foundations are Arnold Binder, Daniel Stokols, and Ray Catalano. The authors of the distinctive definitions of Social Ecology are Daniel Stokols, Thomas Crawford and Dave Taylor. Daniel Stokols identified the four assumptions of the social ecology perspective, and the core principles of social ecological theory. He also described the development of the ecological paradigm, and applied the social ecological perspective to the problem of health promotion.

  After more than a quarter-of-a-century of existence, Social Ecology's faculty is decidedly multi-disciplinary. Its research is focused on problems in society as envisioned by Arnold Binder's founding statement. The nature of the faculty has made highly relevant the issue of how research is conducted by a multi-disciplinary faculty and its collaborators. This circumstance has in turn made relevant Patricia Rosenfield's distinctions between multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary research. Professor Stokols also addressed this issue in the broader context of the future of interdisciplinarity in the School of Social Ecology.

  From its origins as the interdisciplinary program Arnold Binder founded in 1970, Social Ecology was accorded status as a formal academic school at UCI in 1992. The rationale for transformation in status and identity is captured in the section on organizational development and the companion historical milestones of development.

  The selected bibliography of scientific Social Ecology was prepared by Professor Stokols for an undergraduate seminar. The 25th Anniversary Celebration is a special web version of an issue of UCI News which appeared in 1996 at the time that the School of Social Ecology dedicated its second major building, Social Ecology II, and recognized the completion of its first 25 years.

  The rationale for compiling "Conceptual Social Ecology" in electronic format is to make more accessible its intellectual origins and historical development. The original documents are widely dispersed, and most are not accessible electronically. The principal intended audience are those graduate students and faculty who are shaping Social Ecology's second 25 years.

John M. Whiteley
Professor of Social Ecology
February 1, 1999

Conceptual Social Ecology has the following sections:

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Introductory Statement by C. Ron Huff, Professor and Dean of the School of Social Ecology

The School of Social Ecology is an interdisciplinary academic unit whose scholarly research and instruction is informed by and contributes to knowledge in the social, behavioral, legal, environmental, and health sciences. The School is comprised of four departments: Criminology, Law and Society; Environmental Analysis and Design; Psychology and Social Behavior; and Planning, Policy and Design. Social Ecology faculty apply scientific methods to the study of a wide array of recurring social, behavioral, and environmental problems. Among issues of long-standing interest in the School are crime and justice in society, social influences on human development over the life cycle, and the effects of the physical environment on health and human behavior. While the field of ecology focuses on the relationships between organisms and their environments, social ecology is concerned with the relationships between human populations and their environments.

Social Ecology's faculty is multidisciplinary, including psychologists with a variety of specialties (e.g., developmental, social, environmental, and health psychology); criminologists; sociologists; political scientists; lawyers; urban and regional planners and economists; environmental health scientists; and program evaluation experts. The School's research and teaching is distinguished by an emphasis on the integration of the concepts and perspectives of these multiple disciplines. This focus is based on the School's core belief that the analysis and amelioration of complex societal problems requires interdisciplinary efforts.

Many Social Ecology faculty are involved in developing policies and interventions directed toward improving the functioning of individuals, families and other groups, organizations, institutions, and communities, while other faculty in the School focus their efforts on the complex environmental issues confronting our society. Social Ecology undergraduate students benefit from the multidisciplinary instructional expertise of the School's faculty in the classroom and are afforded opportunities to engage in field-based and laboratory-based learning, as well, through the School's well-established and highly regarded field studies program and its laboratories. Graduate students work closely with the faculty in the classroom and in laboratories, as well as collaborating on important research projects that enhance their research skills while advancing knowledge and addressing important societal problems.

This presentation of contemporary definitions of social ecology is based upon three primary sources: Bold Venture, a publication of the School of Social Ecology which draws extensively on the insights of Daniel Stokols; Rediscovering Social Ecology, a continuing graduate student initiative which began in the Spring of 1997 to explore the roots of social ecology (the presentation here is by Dave Taylor); and Social Ecology Is What Social Ecologists Do, a brief presentation by Thomas Crawford, faculty convenor of the Rediscovering Social Ecology seminar.

Social Ecology: A Bold Venture

Social Ecology is within the tradition in higher education of mission-oriented teaching, research, and public service. The mission of social ecology is the interdisciplinary analysis of complex problems of contemporary society which occur in the social and physical environments. Interdisciplinary analysis is used in the sense of the joining of talents by researchers from different intellectual backgrounds. An interdisciplinary analysis results in the combining of diverse areas of knowledge to create a broader view.

To facilitate a continuing interdisciplinary analysis of contemporary problems, the faculty of the School of Social Ecology is multi-disciplinary. Included within the faculty are professors originally trained in environmental design, law, philosophy, environmental health science, political science, urban and regional planning, program evaluation, sociology, and six branches of psychology: developmental, clinical, health, social, environmental, and counseling.

Daniel Stokols defined Social Ecology's basic commitment as education and research " that will help solve contemporary environmental and social problems" through an approach which is simultaneously "multi-disciplinary, interdisciplinary, and societally relevant."

Rediscovering Social Ecology

Rediscovering Social Ecology is the designation of an initiative by graduate students to examine the roots of social ecology. Dave Taylor offered the following "working sense" of social ecology:
 

The application of multiple levels and methods of analysis and theoretical perspectives to social problems, recognizing the dynamic and active nature of human-environment interactions and the social, historical, cultural and institutional contexts of people's lives.

In amplifying the meaning of this basic definition, Taylor distinguished six underlying principles of a social ecological analysis:

This framework may include consideration of the notion of context:>

Social Ecology Is What Social Ecologists Do

Thomas Crawford introduces a number of clarifying elaborations concerning the meaning of social ecology. He notes what he calls "interesting complications" associated with some of the terms used in a conceptual definition of social ecology. As a starting point for addressing these "interesting complications," he offered the following conceptual definition:

In considering the meaning of the term "interdisciplinary," Crawford cites the influential work by Christopher Jencks and David Riesman entitled The Academic Revolution. Jencks and Riesman consider disciplines to be administrative categories:

For the purposes of a definition of social ecology, Crawford defines interdisciplinary as "studying a topic from the perspective of two or more subdisciplines that involve different methods, theories, and research topics."

In discussing the phrase "environmental or social problem focus," Crawford reminds us that social and environmental problems are "social constructs." As social constructs, social and environmental problems convey an implicit message that they represent some aspects of society which need to be improved.

Social ecology is not a term which is "precisely definable" in terms of a "conjunction of attributes true of all members and of no non-members." Crawford reminds us that today's basic research project that is part of Social Ecology may be tomorrow's technology relevant to the solution of social or environmental problems.

Social Ecology is for Crawford a "natural category" with "fuzzy boundaries." Therefore, like other natural categories Social Ecology has a most typical or characteristic "prototype":

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The Social Ecology Perspective, according to Stokols (1992), is distinguished by four assumptions:

Applying Assumption One to health promotion, Stokols stated that the promotion of well-being is of necessity "based on an understanding of the dynamic interplay among diverse environmental and personal factors... (Stokols, 1992, p. 7)." This is in contrast to an analytical framework that focuses "exclusively on environmental, biological, or behavioral factors (Stokols, 1992, p. 7)."

By way of elaboration, in Assumption One the health status of individuals and groups "is influenced not only by environmental factors but also by a variety of personal attributes, including genetic heritage, psychological dispositions, and behavioral patterns (Stokols, 1992, p. 7)."

In Assumption Two independent attributes of environments are relevant such as lighting, temperature, noise, space arrangement or group size. Additionally relevant are the "composite relationships among several features, as exemplified by such constructs as behavior settings, person-environment fit, and social climate (Stokols, 1992, p. 7)." These latter points are elaborated in a chapter on "Conceptual Strategies of Environmental Psychology" in book edited by D. Stokols and I. Altman Handbook of Environmental Psychology published by Wiley in 1987.

The perspective in Assumption Three assumes that the effectiveness of an intervention "can be enhanced significantly through the coordination of individuals and groups acting at different levels... (Stokols, 1992, p. 7)."

In the area of health promotion, the multi-level aspect of the Third Assumption is illustrated by family members who make efforts to improve their health practices, the efforts of managers to shape organizational health policies, and the activities of public health officials who direct community health services (Stokols, 1992, p. 7).

By way of illustration on the components of Assumption Four, when it is applied to health promotion, Stokols (1992) drew attention to the following:

The key idea in Assumption Four is the recurrent cycles of mutual influence which are basic to understanding transactions between people and their environments.

Another key idea in Assumption Four is the notion of levels of human environments where some are more local and others are more distant but still with immediate influence. An example provided by Stokols (1992) in the area of health promotion is where state and national ordinances aimed at promoting environmental quality and protecting public health directly influence the occupational safety and health of community work settings.
 
 

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Stokols (1996) addressed the challenge of translating social ecological theory into guidelines for community health programs. The result was the development of a clearly specified theoretical foundation utilizing core principles of social ecological theory. In the process of developing guidelines for community health promotion, Stokols compared the key strengths and limitations of three distinct and complementary perspectives on health promotion: behavior change, environmental enhancement, and social ecological approaches. In this synopsis of Professor Stokols' approach, the focus will be on core principles of social ecology.

INTERRELATIONSHIPS IN SOCIAL ECOLOGICAL THEORY

 Social ecology is alternately conceived as an "overarching framework" or "set of theoretical principles" which assist with understanding interrelationships: for example, among diverse environmental and personal factors in human health and illness. This focus on understanding interrelationships is in recognition of the compelling circumstance that:

Principle One: Multiple Dimensional Analysis

 Environmental settings have multiple dimensions which influence the person-environment interaction. Environmental settings may be analyzed ("ecological analysis") from numerous perspectives which are relevant to health and well-being. Examples of such multiple dimensions include social cohesion, emotional well-being, development maturation, and physical health status.

 Social ecology theory emphasizes "the importance of identifying various physical and social conditions within environments that can affect occupants: physiologic, emotional, and/or social well-being (p 289)." Emotional well-being may be influenced by the perceived predictability, controllability, novelty, and symbolic values of environments.

Principle Two: Differential Dynamic Interplay

 The emphasis is on interrelationships between personal and situational factors. This is in contrast to an orientation which focuses exclusively on behavioral, biological, or environmental factors. This approach recognizes that environmental factors may affect people differently depending on such factors as personality, health practices, perceptions of the controllability of the environment, and financial resources. In social ecological research which incorporates differential dynamic interplay, the "level of congruence (or compatibility) between people and their surroundings is viewed as an important predictor of well-being..." (Stokols, 1996, p. 286).

Principle Three: Relevance of Systems Theory

 Understanding the dynamic interaction between people and their environment requires the application of such principles from systems theory as interdependence, deviation amplification, homeostasis, and negative feedback.

 This incorporation of systems theory facilitates the characterization of people-environment transactions in terms of cycles of mutual influences. In such a characterization, for example, physical and social settings both influence health, and the participants may engage in individual or collective action to modify both the social and the physical settings.

Principle Four: Interdependence of Environmental Conditions

 This principle recognizes the importance of the interconnections between multiple settings and life domains, and the close interlinkage between the social and physical facets of those settings. By way of example, there can be independent effects and joint effects on individuals from a wide range of social and physical aspects of settings. Interdependencies exist among both immediate and distant environments.

 A "core principle of social ecology is that the environmental contexts of human activity function as dynamic systems. This systemic quality of settings is reflected in the interdependencies between physical and social conditions within particular environments and in the nested structure of multiple settings and life domains" (Stokols, 1996, p. 291).

 Multiple settings affect participant well-being. It is important not to neglect consideration of the links between the social and physical aspects of environments and the joint influence of those multiple settings. In this context, "social ecological theory emphasizes not only the interrelatedness of conditions within single settings but also the links between multiple settings and life domains within the broader community" (Stokols, 1996, p. 292).

Principle Five: Inherent Interdisciplinarity

 Social ecology analyses emphasize the integration of multiple levels of analysis (for example macro level preventive strategies of public health and epidemiology with micro level individual strategies from medicine) with diverse methodologies (epidemiological analyses, environmental recordings, medical examinations, questionnaires, and behavioral observations).

 Interdisciplinary research in the area of health promotion is essential to the development of comprehensive programs which "link the perspectives of medicine, public health, and the behavioral and social sciences" (Stokols, 1996, p. 288).
 
 

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The field of social ecology can be contrasted with earlier versions of human ecology. Human ecology gave greater attention to biological processes and the geographic environment. An early statement of the principles of human ecology is Hawley's (1950) book titled Human Ecology: A Theory of Community Structure. This book reflects the roots of human ecology in the field of biology. Ecology itself "pertains broadly to the interrelations between organisms and their environments (Stokols, 1992, p. 7)."

A number of disciplines have contributed to the development of the ecological paradigm as it is employed in the definition of social ecology. The ecological paradigm contains contributions from disciplines with such diverse theoretical frameworks as sociology, psychology, economics, and public health. It provides a "general framework for understanding the nature of people's transactions with their physical and sociocultural surroundings (Stokols, 1992, p. 7)."

Contributors to the development of the ecological paradigm as it is used in the definition of social ecology include: R. Park's and E. Burgess' (1925) edited book The City published by the University of Chicago Press, J. Cassell's (1964) article "Social Science Theory as a Source of Hypotheses in Epidemiological Research" which appeared in the American Journal of Public Health (Vol. 54, pp. 1482-87), R. G. Barker's (1968) book Ecological Psychology: Concepts and Methods for Studying the Environment of Human Behavior which was published by the Stanford University Press, A. Rogers-

Warren's and S. F. Warren's (1977) edited book Ecological Perspectives in Behavior Analysis published by the University Park Press, and R. Catalano's (1979) book Health, Behavior, and the Community: An Ecological Perspective published by Pergamon Press.

The ecological paradigm in the perspective of social ecology has an extended lineage of development with contributors from a number of different disciplines. The culmination of this period of development is that the "field of social ecology gives greater attention to the social, institutional, and cultural contexts of people-environment relations than did earlier versions of human ecology (Stokols, 1992, p. 7.)"

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In "A New Context for Psychology: Social Ecology" Arnold Binder issued a resounding challenge to the status quo of professional schools. In this assessment, the missions of the academic enterprise of professional schools are determined by their professional identities, not by innovation or addressing the "social problems of the day" (Binder, 1972, p. 903). In this founding vision, and in distinction from disciplinary-based education, Social Ecology is "broadly interdisciplinary" including components from the biological and physical, as well as the behavioral and social sciences.
 
 

ISSUES OF PUBLIC POLICY AND SOCIAL PROBLEMS
 
 

As an academic unit conceived with commitments to interdisciplinarity, innovation, and research directly relevant to issues of public policy and social problems, Social Ecology in this original conception represented a fundamental challenge to the traditional disciplinary based organization of the modern research university. Another difference between Social Ecology and more traditionally based academic enterprises is being as committed to educating for community-oriented jobs as it is committed to training research workers (Binder, 1972, p. 903).

PURPOSES OF SOCIAL ECOLOGY
 
 

What are the purposes of Social Ecology in this founding vision? In what was later in its history characterized as a "bold vision", Social Ecology was conceived and developed by Binder "for the purpose of providing direct interaction between the intellectual life of the university and the recurring problems of the social and physical environment" (Binder, 1972, p. 903).
 
 

NECESSITY FOR MULTIDISCIPLINARITY
 
 

The necessity for multidisciplinarity is rooted in the nature of human beings: biological organisms in a cultural-physical environment. The number and diversity of disciplines within the School of Social Ecology after a quarter-of-a-century of development has its roots in a goal of the founding curricula which was aimed at "equipping students to attack and solve environmental problems" (Binder, 1972, p. 904).

DEFINITION OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS
 
 

"Environmental problems" were defined broadly to span social relationships (how people relate to each other), the consequences of social heritage, and the relationship of humans to the broader biological and physical environment. The emphasis is on the nature of the interactive process between people and the environment.
 
 

EDUCATING FOR RESPONSIBLE CITIZENSHIP
 
 

Regardless of a students' ultimate career objectives, a founding vision for Social Ecology was to provide an education which would produce graduates who would be "more effective and knowledgeable citizens because of a familiarity with community problems and the potential modes of solution..." (Binder, 1972, p. 905).
 
 

Another distinguishing feature of the founding curricula was a commitment to making most Social Ecology courses available to students majoring elsewhere on the UCI campus. The goal of such an outreach is "the development of an environmental or ecological outlook among students whose primary interests are more traditional" (Binder, 1972, p. 905).

Citation:

 Binder, Arnold (1972) A new context for psychology: Social ecology. American Psychologist, 27, September, 1972, 903-908.
 

By way of summary, this founding vision for Social Ecology has a number of distinctive dimensions and original conceptualizations. These distinguish it from the more traditional disciplinary-based academic departments and schools which characterize research multiversities at the end of the Twentieth Century:
 
 

In "Social Ecology: An Emerging Multidiscipline" Binder, Stokols, and Catalano (1975) extended the rationale for the founding vision of Social Ecology articulated originally in Binder (1972). The evolution of Social Ecology is rooted in a challenge to the traditional purposes of higher education which are reflected in the disciplinary-based modern research university. The challenge is "to make the university enterprise more sensitive to non-academic needs and difficulties" (Binder, Stokols, and Catalano, 1975, p. 32).
 
 

THE UNIVERSITY IN SOCIETY
 
 

In developing their conception of the needs of society and the role of the university in addressing those needs, the authors drew on Weidner (1974) who had written that the university should be "more fully a part of society" while maintaining its autonomy and academic freedom: "the needs are for a university that has a sense of social responsibility; that has a problem orientation to its curriculum; that is concerned with future time; and that seeks the integration of knowledge" (Weidner, 1974, p. 3). Key elements in the Weidner analysis are social responsibility, problem oriented education and research, a future rather than a past orientation to developing solutions to social problems, and a commitment to integrating knowledge across pertinent disciplines.
 
 

INTERNATIONAL COMMONALITIES
 
 

Binder, Stokols, and Catalano (1975) surveyed a number of international programs which had in common with the emerging social ecology paradigm community involvement by faculty and students, and research and teaching which is strongly multidisciplinary. A common approach which was observed combined a broad definition of "environmental studies" with social and interpersonal processes, and a consideration of the biological and physical environment. The intellectual and programmatic development of Social Ecology was clearly occurring in a global context.
 
 

A common theme in the international context for the development of the social ecological paradigm was increasing societal concern for the social and environmental problems which were resistant to disciplinary based definition and approaches to solution. This created what the authors called a "supportive atmosphere for the innovation of interdisciplinary, problem-oriented programs" (Binder, Stokols, and Catalano, 1975, p. 34).
 
 

INTELLECTUAL ANTECEDENTS OF THE ECOLOGICAL PARADIGMS
 
 

Contemporaneous with the development in the broader society of a supportive atmosphere for the social ecological approach was the construction of a theoretical basis on which researchers "from disparate areas could collaborate in an effort to apply scientific methodology to the analysis and resolution of societal problems" (Binder, Stokols, and Catalano, 1975, p. 34) An analytical framework was articulated in which societal problems could be analyzed systematically at macro and micro levels.
 
 

The authors provided a detailed examination of the intellectual foundations of the ecological paradigm from its roots in biological and sociological perspectives and from psychological and architectural perspectives. The implications of this explication of the ecological paradigm are profound in their implications for social ecological research.
 
 

By way of example, the authors use Michelson's notion of "intersystem congruence" to demonstrate how architecture and urban design can be impacted by related areas of research. Michelson's construct defines as optimal environments ones in which the personal needs and cultural values of those who live in the environment are congruent with the specific environment's social and physical characteristics. For example, psychosocial profiles may become the basis for developing the nature of future settings which are designed for their congruence with cultural and personal attributes of those who will reside in them.
 
 

INVOLVEMENT WITH THE COMMUNITY
 
 

Academic study within Social Ecology is axiomatically applicable to the community: The community itself serves as "an auxiliary source of educational enrichment" (Binder, Stokols, and Catalano, 1975, p. 41). Rather than traditional organization by academic subject matter or discipline, the curricula is organized by problem area. There is a coordination between theoretical and applied learning and on-campus and off-campus experience. Central features of Social Ecology are an encompassing environmental outlook, multi-disciplinarity, and community involvement.
 
 

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This section presents several of the key documents which were submitted as part of the transition of the Program in Social Ecology to its current status as a School of Social Ecology. Initially Social Ecology was classified as an interdisciplinary program.

There are three documents which comprise SECTION V. The first is an excerpt from a proposal to establish a School of Social Ecology submitted to the UCI administration dated June of 1989. The second is adapted from a presentation then Director of Social Ecology Daniel Stokols to the Representative Assembly of the UCI Academic Senate on November 29, 1990. The third is the Social Ecology portion of the 1990 UCI Academic Plan called "Visions for the 21st Century"

... Still the important question remains: What are the unique research and educational functions served by Social Ecology? Is the present proposal to establish a School of Social Ecology simply an effort by one unit to enlarge its resource base, or will the proposed reorganization help to achieve significant research and educational gains for the campus as a whole? To address these issues, we first describe certain intellectual themes and substantive concerns that are emphasized within Social Ecology. We then discuss the graduate and undergraduate core curricula in Social Ecology and the ways in which these required courses uniquely integrate the themes of ecological analysis, interdisciplinary research, and community intervention. It is the integration and application of these intellectual themes in our research and teaching programs that make Social Ecology distinctive vis-à-vis other academic units.

The intellectual foundations of Social Ecology are quite diverse and span numerous disciplines. The research orientation and educational philosophy of the Program in Social Ecology are rooted in several intellectual traditions, including evolutionary biology (Darwin, Wallace), open-systems theory (Von Bertalanffy, Maruyama, Miller), the Chicago School of Human Ecology (Park, Burgess, Hawley), urban sociology (Durkheim, Simmel, Wirth, Michelson), ecological psychology (Barker, Lewin), and the fields of public health (Cassel), urban planning (Haig), criminology and law (Sutherland, Cressey, Sax). But the Program is not simply a multidisciplinary amalgam of disparate fields and intellectual traditions. Rather, the research and educational perspectives emphasized in our Program are rooted in a common set of theoretical and methodological themes, all of which are derived from the ecological paradigm as it has evolved within the fields of biology, sociology, psychology, and public health. These over-arching themes are, in effect, the intellectual "glue" that links the diverse research areas found within the Program.

Several programmatic themes are emphasized within Social Ecology's undergraduate and graduate core curricula, as well as within our elective courses. Among these themes are the following: (1)Êthe close interdependence among biotic and abiotic systems within environments of varying size and complexity, and the ways in which balances and perturbations among these systems occur through deviation-countering and deviation-amplifying processes; (2)Êthe importance of observing people-environment transactions within naturalistic settings over extended periods as well as within shorter-term laboratory situations, so that the reciprocal and context-specific nature of people-environment relations can be better understood; (3)Êthe value of integrating multiple methodologies (e.g., qualitative and quantitative methods; environmental monitoring, physiological assays, and survey research; experimental and quasi-experimental research designs) in analyses of complex ecological systems; (4)Êthe importance of linking scientific research and community intervention strategies toward the resolution of pressing societal problems (e.g., environmental pollution, urban violence and crime; health and behavioral impacts of new technologies); and, (5)Êthe value of approaching complex community and environmental problems from multiple levels of analysis (spanning individuals, small groups, organizations, whole communities and geographical regions), rather than from singular disciplinary or theoretical perspectives.

The above-noted principles of ecological analysis, interdisciplinary research, and community intervention are introduced at the graduate level through the Seminar in Social Ecology (SE200). This course highlights the intellectual roots of Social Ecology and examines the theoretical and methodological tenets of ecologically-oriented research. Graduate students also take two quarters of multivariate statistics (SE264 A&B) and a seminar in Research Methods (SE201). These courses introduce students to a broad range of methodological strategies and statistical techniques for the measurement and evaluation of ecological systems. For their fifth core seminar, students can choose among three different courses: Program Evaluation (SE291), Behavioral Epidemiology (SE224), or Strategies of Theory Development (SE261). Together, the five required graduate courses provide in-depth coverage of the intellectual traditions and programmatic concerns of Social Ecology. Graduate Students also take six additional elective courses in which these general principles and themes are elaborated within the context of specific substantive areas (e.g., environmental health, urban planning, human development, health psychology, criminology, law and society).

The undergraduate core curriculum in Social Ecology includes five lower division courses and three upper division courses. The lower level courses introduce students to the principles of ecological analysis as they apply within three broad areas of inquiry: Criminal Justice (J4), Environmental Analysis (E8), and Social Behavior (S9). Social Ecology majors also are required to take two methodology courses, Research Design (SE10) and Statistics (SE13 or equivalent). The upper level courses consist of the field study sequence. These include a lecture course introducing field observation techniques (Studies in Field Settings, SE194) and two quarters of field internship (about 10 hours per week in a field setting plus one hour per week in small seminar with a faculty supervisor, SE195). In addition, Social Ecology majors are required to take ten upper-division elective courses and can choose to graduate with specializations in Environmental Analysis, Social Behavior, or Criminal Justice by taking six of their electives within one of these three areas.

General
 
 

The Program in Social Ecology was established in 1970 as an interdisciplinary unit to carry out research and provide instruction on contemporary problems in the social and physical environment from an ecological perspective. Over the past 20 years the Program in Social Ecology has compiled a strong record of interdisciplinary research and teaching. External review committees have commented on the distinctiveness and high quality of Social Ecology's undergraduate and graduate curricula. For example, the most recent graduate review committee commented that "We find the Program in Social Ecology to be a valuable and unique resource for the State and for the nation. The interdisciplinary model of the Program is imaginative and well-conceived. In addition, while most examples of interdisciplinary education elsewhere have failed, this Program has survived and is flourishing." Similarly, the undergraduate review committee noted that "The Social Ecology Program is unique in this country if not the world. Although there are some interdisciplinary programs in other universities--Law and Society, Public Policy and Management, Anthropology and Sociology--there is nothing quite like the combination, ambition, and comprehensiveness found in Social Ecology."

The Program has established several nationally visible research programs and graduate specializations in fields such as human development, health psychology, criminology, law and society, and environmental analysis and design. Social Ecology is the third largest undergraduate major on the campus and carries a relatively high student-to-faculty ratio of 46:3, as of 1988-89. Social Ecology's undergraduate field study and student affirmative action programs (most notably, the Excellence and Minority Mentorship Programs) have earned praise at campus and systemwide levels for their uniqueness and excellence.

The Program offers B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. degrees in Social Ecology. Undergraduates may elect to take a general interdisciplinary Social Ecology curriculum or to focus their studies in any of three areas of specialization: Environmental Health and Planning; Psychology and Social Behavior; and Criminology, Law and Society. In addition, undergraduates may enroll in the Applied Ecology degree curriculum which is jointly offered by the Program and the School of Biological Sciences.

The graduate program in Social Ecology focuses primarily upon theories and research which have implications for social policy and action. In the last year, four formal Ph.D. concentrations became available to graduate students: Human Development; Health Psychology; Environmental Analysis and Design; and Criminology, Law and Society. While the Program has no formal departments, faculty members are affiliated with three major areas, each headed by a faculty chair. While all faculty members have a primary affiliation with one group, many also have secondary affiliations with one or more other groups. Each of the groups is interdisciplinary, and the secondary affiliations further contribute to maintenance of the interdisciplinary character which has successfully served as the foundation of the Program since its inception.

Social Ecology currently has a faculty of 31, with six additional faculty positions and one endowed chair available for recruitment. Two of the open faculty positions will be filled as of July 1990. The Program is housed in 23,144 square feet of the Social Ecology Building, which is currently inadequate to support ongoing research and teaching activities. During Spring 1991, the Program is scheduled to occupy an additional 6,000 square feet in the Social Ecology Building, following the move of the Public Policy Research Organization to the new Campus Office Building. During 1995-96, Social Ecology is scheduled to occupy an additional 24,000 square feet in the new Social Science Building. These augmentations of Social Ecology's space will permit the growth and expansion of the Program's research and teaching activities, as outlined in its Long-range Plan submitted in June 1989.
 
 

Undergraduate Education
 
 

There has been substantial growth in the number of Social Ecology majors in recent years: in 1984-85 there were 441 majors, whereas in 1988-89 there were 1,082. Since an undergraduate does not have to declare commitment to one of the three offered specializations, precise data on the distribution of students among the general degree program and the three specialization programs are not available. However, a review of courses taken by members of the class of 1989 indicates that about 10 percent elected the general curriculum, 5 percent elected the Applied Ecology degree program, and 85 percent elected specializations--20 percent in Environmental Health and Planning; 35 percent in Psychology and Social Behavior; and 30 percent in Criminology, Law and Society. The Environmental Health and Planning specialization focuses on issues related to the impact of the physical environment on human health and behavior. The Psychology and Social Behavior specialization is concerned with human behavior over the life span in various social contexts (e.g., the family, workplace, school). The social control of criminality and violence and the relationship between society and its legal institutions are central issues addressed in the Criminology, Law and Society specialization.

A special feature of the Social Ecology undergraduate curriculum is its field studies requirement. All majors must participate in field research. The settings provided for student field study include a wide range of problem-oriented institutions in the private and public sectors (e.g., schools, health care facilities, private law firms, police departments). An honors program is open to upper division students who have completed at least five upper-division Social Ecology courses with a minimum GPA of 3.5.

Growth in the undergraduate major has been accompanied by growth in the undergraduate workload. In 1984-85, the Program was responsible for a three-term average workload of approximately 8,400 student credit-hours, whereas 1988-89 the figure was 15,000 student credit hours.
 
 

New Undergraduate Programs
 
 

The Program has proposed that it be administratively reorganized as a School. Under such a restructuring, the core Social Ecology curriculum would be retained, and students would be able to elect a general Social Ecology degree or the Applied Ecology major. Three areas of undergraduate emphasis, closely related to the existing ones, would be available. The area of environmental analysis and design would provide undergraduates an opportunity to specialize in applied ecology, environmental health, architecture, facilities management, and urban design and planning. The area of psychology and social behavior would provide curricula leading to specializations in developmental and health psychology, demography, urban sociology, and social epidemiology. The third area--criminology, law, and society--would offer specialty tracks in criminology, environmental law, legal institutions and legal procedure, and the relationships of law and the social sciences. The establishment of these areas each offering a variety of specialty tracks, would allow significantly greater coherence of Social Ecology's undergraduate curriculum.
 
 

Graduate Education
 
 

The Social Ecology graduate program grew from 62 students in 1984-85 to 86 in 1988-89. That almost 40 percent increase was accompanied by a decrease in admissions selectivity; 33 percent of its applicants were admitted in 1984-85, whereas 48 percent were admitted in 1988-89. However, only 32 percent of the graduate applicants were admitted during 1989-90. Although some decline was noted in the quality of students entering the graduate program during 1988-89 (as assessed by math and verbal GRE scores), the quality of entering graduate students was quite strong in 1989-90.

As of 1988, four formal Ph.D. concentrations became available, in addition to the general Social Ecology graduate program. These concentrations are: Health Psychology; Human Development; Environmental Analysis and Design; and Criminology, Law, and Society. Because these concentrations are new and not all students have indicated whether they are going to take one of them, it is possible only to estimate the number of students in each area. However, current data indicate that 32 percent of graduate students are unaffiliated with a concentration and that 25 percent are in Human Development, 15 percent are in Health Psychology, 15 percent are in Criminology, Law and Society, and 13 percent are in Environmental Analysis and Design. In addition to these Ph.D. concentrations, the Program also offers two Master's degree concentrations, Urban and Regional Planning and Facilities Planning and Management. Their first classes will be admitted Fall 1991.
 
 

New Graduate Programs
 
 

The Program submitted a proposal to offer a master's degree in Urban and Regional Planning which was approved by the Graduate Council in 1989 and by CCGA in 1990. The proposal is currently under review by the Office of the President and the California Post-Secondary Education Commission. It is anticipated that the proposal will be approved this year and that implementation of the program will begin Fall 1991. There currently are 13 Social Ecology faculty who will contribute to this master's program and 18 faculty in other units whose teaching and research activities are relevant to it; the Program is now working to recruit three faculty members in this area as well. The Program, which is a professional program, is expected to have an enrollment of approximately 20 students in its first few years. The new M.A. concentration in Facilities Planning and Management is also expected to enroll approximately 20 students a year.

The Program's proposal for reorganization as a School involves some restructuring of its graduate degree programs. Under the three departments that would be established, a number of graduate degree programs will be developed over the next decade. The Environmental Analysis and Design group would offer three postbaccalaureate degrees under the proposal: the Master's in Urban and Regional Planning, a Master's in Facilities Planning and Management, and a Ph.D. in Environmental Health and Public Policy. The proposal calls for the Psychology and Social Behavior area faculty to offer Ph.D. programs in Human Development and health Psychology. The Program submitted a proposal to establish a Ph.D. in Health Psychology to the Graduate Council during Fall 1989. A proposal to establish the Human Development Ph.D. was submitted to the Graduate Council during Winter 1990. Both proposals are currently under review. The Criminology, Law, and Society group would offer a single Ph.D. program. In addition to these focused graduate programs, Social Ecology will continue to offer the M.A. and Ph.D. in the general area of Social Ecology.

The Program's proposal to become a School would create three schoolwide administrative positions; Dean, Associate Dean for Graduate Studies, and Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies and would also create three departments. The most recent external review committees for Social Ecology's undergraduate and graduate programs have expressed support for the reorganization. As has been discussed above, one objective of this restructuring is to develop more focused undergraduate and graduate curricula. The Program plans to maintain its unique interdisciplinary structure and educational orientation by requiring all Ph.D. students to take a core curriculum involving interdisciplinary emphases. The range of programs to be offered will be considered within the context of the campus resources required to mount nationally recognized programs in each area. It is clear that the Criminology, Law, and Society area (department) will facilitate eventual establishment of a law school at UCI. Moreover, the area allows for the eventual development of an interschool degree program in jurisprudence and social policy. Similarly, the new degree programs in Urban and Regional Planning and Facility Planning and Management will provide an intellectual basis for the possible establishment of a school of urban planning and design at UCI. The relationship between the proposed Ph.D. in Health Psychology and the development of a doctoral program in clinical psychology, a possibility also now under active consideration, is currently being assessed. As at other major universities, these programs could complement each other and enrich the training of graduate students in each specialty. The faculty of the Program in Social Ecology have prepared several detailed degree proposals that merit the closest consideration in the context of the development of both the initiatives of Social Ecology and the campus as a whole.
 
 
 

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Stokols (1992) conceptualized health promotion broadly as "a dynamic transaction between individuals and groups and their psychosocial milieu (p. 8)". Such a conceptualization requires an analysis of both the environmental resources which are available and the life-styles and health habits of the individuals under study.

The first step was to measure the features of the environment which promote personal and collective well-being by different criteria at different levels of analysis. In taking this first step Stokols employed one of the basic assumptions of the ecological perspective that "healthfulness is a multifaceted phenomenon encompassing physical health, emotional well-being, and social cohesion (Stokols, 1992, p. 8)."

For Stokols, an "explicit recognition of the multiple facets of healthfulness has important implications for ecologically oriented analyses of health promotion (Stokols, 1992, p. 8)." Such a recognition leads to defining the health-promotive capacity of an environment in terms of multiple health outcomes:

The table presented environmental resources which have a positive influence on individual and group well-being. Person-environment transactions with health outcomes may be assessed at different levels of analysis.

Stokols notes that "Given the diversity of environmental conditions present in most settings, it is likely that the relationships between those conditions and multiple health indices will be quite varied and sometimes contradictory (Stokols, 1992, p. 9)." In a social ecological analysis of health promotion, the principal point is the importance of examining both physical and social dimensions of environments and their joint influence of well-being.

Another aspect of applying a social ecological perspective to health promotion is the task of developing interdisciplinary models of the relationships among environmental and behavioral factors in health.

Following L. W. Green's (1984) article "Modifying and developing health behavior" which appeared in the Annual Review of Public Health (Vol. 11, pp. 215-236), Stokols drew attention to a bias in the health-promotion field toward psychological analyses. Interventions with an illness-prevention purpose typically have little or no theoretical input from the fields of sociology, anthropology, economics, and political science.

By way of contrast, a broader analysis is possible by focusing from a social ecological perspective on the health-promotive capacity of environments: "of the transitions between individual and collective behaviors and the various constraints and resources for health that exist in specific sociophysical environments (Stokols, 1992, p. 12)."

The approach Stokols took to accomplish this task was to extend the analysis of healthy environments to a more comprehensive and interactive analysis of "the relationships among behavioral and environmental factors in health and health promotion (Stokols, 1992, p. 12)."

Represented in text format are five health-related functions of the sociophysical environment:

1. Both the physical and social environment can function as mediums for disease transmission.
Examples:  
ï waterborne and airborne diseases

ï illnesses resulting from food contamination

ï spread of contagious disease through interpersonal contact

2. The environment can operate as a stressor.
 
Examples: ï emotional stress resulting from chronic exposure to uncontrollable environmental demands

ï physical debilitation resulting from chronic exposure to uncontrollable environmental demands, (illustrations of uncontrollable environmental demands are noise, abrupt economic change, or interpersonal conflict)

Stokols also notes that exposure to a positive environment can alleviate stress and promote physical and emotional well-being.
3. The environment functions as a source of safety or danger with respect to health consequences.
Examples: ï natural and technological disasters

ï air and water pollution

ï occupational hazards

ï interpersonal violence

ï crime

4. The environment can function as an enabler of health behavior.
Examples: ï installation of safety devices in buildings and vehicles

ï geographic proximity to health care

ï exposure to cultural practices which foster health-promotive behavior

5. The environment serves as a provider of health resources.
Examples: ï community sanitation services

ï organizational and community health services

ï legislation protecting the quality of physical environments

ï legislation ensuring citizens' access to health insurance

ï legislation ensuring citizens' access to community-based health care

The multi-perspective approach and the multi-level analytical framework of social ecology may be illustrated in its application to health promotion. The five health-related functions of the sociophysical environment are one element of a social ecology perspective.

Another component of a social ecology perspective on health promotion is to link an environmental analysis to biological, psychological, and behavioral factors in health, then to develop the framework which emerges at different levels of analysis. Linking an environmental analysis to biological, psychological, and behavior factors was accomplished by Stokols (1992) with two specific categories under the general heading of "Personal and Environmental Factors in Health and Illness."

The first specific category he labeled "Biopsychobehavioral Factors." Within this category were three perspectives: Biogenic, Psychological, and Behavior. Each perspective was then approached from a multi-level analytic framework:

Another framework for analysis within a social ecological perspective would be to link the five health-related functions of the sociophysical environment to the identification of the specific mechanisms by which geographic, architectural-technological, and sociocultural factors influence health and illness. Since research has not yet confirmed many of the specific linkages, such a framework for analysis also defines a number of avenues for future inquiry. Stokols (1992) represented this analytical framework visually. Dimensions of the environment (multiple perspectives) were presented in terms of levels of function of the environment, and whether the dimension identified and selected was physical or social.

This was represented visually as follows:

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The source of perspective for this section of Conceptual Social ecology are Rosenfield (1992) and Stokols (1998).

CONCEPTUAL RATIONALE FOR TRANSDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH

 Both Stokols (1998) and Rosenfield (1992) consider the essence of transdisciplinary research to be a common conceptual framework which blends existing concepts and theories. Expected outcomes of transdisciplinary research are more comprehensive analyses, new concepts, and new research techniques. Additional outcomes include new training programs and policy changes.

The emphasis is on taking into account the "broader context" in which occurs the societal problem of health or environment which is under study. Taking in account "the broader context" leads to more lasting improvements in the situation which is being studied. Rosenfield urges that researchers "fuse the research approaches and work together in data collection and analysis and interpretation of findings" (Rosenfield, 1992, p. 1349).
 
 

CHARACTERISTICS OF INTERDISCIPLINARY, MULTIDISCIPLINARY, AND TRANSDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH
 
 

Rosenfield (1992, p 1351) provides a taxonomy of cross disciplinary research by distinguishing the distinctive characteristics of multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary research.

A result of a common conceptual framework is that it can lead to new practical approaches to solving societal problems of health and environment. In transdisciplinary inquiry, researchers work together on such basic research tasks as defining the problem, identifying concepts and research methods, and presenting results. New approaches to social and medical science flow from the process of working together.
 
 

ILLUSTRATIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF A TRANSDISCIPLINARY CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
 
 

Rosenfield (1992) describes the characteristics of a conceptual framework for transdisciplinary research. Such a framework "should explicitly incorporate structures of society and bring into play all conditioning factors which influence the extent of health problems" (Rosenfield, 1992, p. 1351).
 
 

By way of example, she provided an illustration of incorporating the conceptual relationship between social, economic, political, and intersectoral conditions and impacts in a study of tropical disease.
 
 

1. Examine social and economic consequences of tropical diseases;

 

 

2. Following adaptation, examine the development and use of medical technologies;

 

 

3. Explicitly include the contextual, political, economic factors;

 

 

4. Explicitly include health inputs, inputs from other sectors;

 

 

5. Explicitly include the combined impact on health, social, and economic outcomes "which then feedback to change the baseline conditions" (Rosenfield, 1992, p. 1352).

 

 

Rosenfield identified the goal of transdisciplinary research in the context of epidemiological challenges in the rise of chronic disease in developing countries and the resurgence of infectious diseases in developed countries:
 
 

Transdisciplinary research is not "research as usual." There is a "full discussion" of the problem, and more "extensive" and "in-depth" analyses. In the tropical health example, what was included was broadly based: the research framework was expanded to include "concepts from sociology, demography, anthropology, epidemiology, immunology, parasitology, and entomology coalesced and linked with the basic economic concepts underlying the migration and resettlement strategies of the government" (Rosenfield, 1992, p. 1353).
 
 

Again, by way of illustration from the tropical health example:
 
 

Citations:

Rosenfield, P. L. (1992) The potential of transdisciplinary research for sustaining and extending linkages between the health and social sciences. Social Science Med., 35(11), 1343-1357.
 
 

Stokols, D. (1998). The future of interdisciplinarity in the School of Social Ecology. Paper presented at the School of Social Ecology Associates Annual Awards Reception. School of Social Ecology, University of California, Irvine. May 21, 1998. http://eee.uci.edu/98f/50990/readings.htm
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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UCI News: UCI School of Social Ecology: 25TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Dan Stokols: The Future of Interdisciplinarity in the School of Social Ecology
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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PART I: HISTORICAL FOUNDATIONS OF SOCIAL ECOLOGY
 
 

Principles of Biological and Human Ecology
 
 

Homeostasis and Disequilibrium Within Biological and Social Systems
 
 

Disciplines, Paradigms, and Theories
 
 

Avoiding Unintended Side-Effects of Community Interventions