The social ecology of child health and well-being

The term social ecology refers to the nested arrangement of family, school, neighborhood, and community contexts in which children grow up. In this ch apter, new directions in public health science as reflected in the theoreti cal and methodological implications of the concept are explored. The contri butions of this ecologically oriented approach to child health practice, de signed as it is from a health promotions perspective, are considered. A cri tique of the term social capital is also presented because of its growing p opularity in matters of child health. The point is made that application of this vague term carries the serious risk of misspecifying social phenomena . Future trends in the promotion of child well-being are in a position to f lourish given the confluence of advances in theory, methods, and analytical capacity. The capacity to benefit children is also enhanced as public heal th science aims to translate the principles of child rights into health pra ctice and policy.