18. Rotter and Mischel (Cognitive Social Learning Theory)

Question 1

Rotter’s Theory of Behaviour

Answer 1

people’s behavior in a specific situation is a function of their expectations of reinforcements and the strength of the needs satisfied by those reinforcements

Question 2

Basic Prediction Formula

Answer 2

the potential for a given behavior to occur is a function of the person’s expectancy plus the value of the reinforcement

Question 3

general prediction formula

Answer 3

need potential is a function of freedom of movement and need value

Question 4

Need potential

Answer 4

possible occurrence of a set of functionally related behaviors directed toward the satisfaction of a goal or a similar set of goals

Question 5

Freedom of movement

Answer 5

average expectancy that a set of related behaviors will be reinforced

Question 6

Need value

Answer 6

the degree to which a person prefers one set of reinforcements to another

Question 7

generalized expectancies for success

Answer 7

develop based on a similar set of experiences that has been previously reinforced

Question 8

Locus of control

Answer 8

a generalized expectancy that refers to people’s belief that they can or cannot control their lives

Question 9

Interpersonal trust

Answer 9

a generalized expectancy that the word of another is reliable

Question 10

Maladaptive behavior

Answer 10

those actions that fail to move a person closer to a desired goal

Question 11

Mischel’s cognitive-active personality system

Answer 11

suggests that people’s behavior is largely shaped by an interaction of stable personality traits and the situation, which include a number of personal variables

Question 12

Cognitive-affective units include:

Answer 12

(i) people’s encoding strategies, or their way of construing and categorizing information;

(ii) their competencies and self regulatory plans, or what they can do and their strategies for doing it;

(iii) their expectancies and beliefs about the perceived consequences of their actions;

(iv) their goals and values;

(v) their affective responses

Question 13

Mischel’s Theory of Behaviour

Answer 13

Relatively stable personality dispositions interact with cognitive-affective units to produce behavior

Question 14

Consistency of Personal Dispositions

Answer 14

some consistency over time but little consistency from one situation to another