What theory describes the movement of the Earth's surface broken into plates?

The theory of Plate Tectonics is comprehensive in explaining the structure and movement of the Earth's outer layer, which is divided into several large and small plates. This theory integrates the concepts of continental drift and seafloor spreading, providing a unifying framework that accounts for the dynamic nature of the Earth's surface.

Plate Tectonics outlines how these plates interact at their boundaries, leading to various geological phenomena like earthquakes, volcanic activity, and mountain formation. It describes not only the movements of these plates but also their interactions, such as divergence, convergence, and transform motions. This understanding helps explain the distribution of continents and oceans, as well as the formation of geological features over geological time scales.

In contrast, while Continental Drift focuses on the idea that continents have moved over time, and Seafloor Spreading pertains specifically to the creation of new oceanic crust at mid-ocean ridges, Plate Tectonics encompasses both of these processes and integrates them into a broader context of Earth's geological activity.