发展情境论(Developmental Contextualism)是发展系统理论体系中的一种具有代表性的理论。该理论认为人的发展是通过发展中的个体与其所处情境间的持续交互作用实现的,个体的发展变化过程在本质上是或然渐成性的。该理论不仅更系统地概括了影响人发展的时间和空间因素,而且在交互作用观点的基础上提出了循环影响的研究取向。同时,发展情境论认为人的可塑性特点为干预个体的发展提供了可能,并进一步提出了干预的思路,即通过建立和调整个体与所处情境的拟合优度模型来实现个体和所处情境的积极发展。
Developmental Contextualism, as an instance of developmental system theories, represents a new and increasingly influential theoretical perspective on human development. The central idea of Developmental Contextualism lies in that changing, reciprocal relations (or dynamic interactions) between individuals and the multiple contexts within which they live comprise the essential process of human development, and that the goodness-of-fit of between the person and the context can foster the positive development of individual. In contrast with the notion of predetermined epigenesis as reflected in many stage theories of human development, theorists of Developmental Contextualism admit greater plasticity in development and believe that developmental changes are probabilistic in respect to normative outcome due to variations in the timing of biological, psychological, and social factors (or levels) that provide integrative base of ontogenetic progression. The circular effects research-a new research approach--has been proposed by Developmental Contextualism to investigate the circulate functions in development.