Which statement about the ecological model's view of person and environment is true?

• A. They are in constant interaction, influencing each other
• B. The environment has no impact
• C. They are separate
• D. The person controls environment entirely

Answer: (A)

Reciprocal influence between person and environment is the idea being tested. In the ecological view, individuals and their surroundings are in constant, two-way interaction—each shapes the other. A person’s behaviors and choices help mold family, school, and community contexts, while those environments provide structure, resources, and constraints that affect behavior and development. This ongoing transaction explains why outcomes come from how they interact, not from the person or environment alone. That’s why the true statement is that they are in constant interaction, influencing each other. The other options imagine the environment has no impact, that they are separate, or that the person controls the environment entirely, all of which contradict this mutual influence.