APPROACHES - SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY Flashcards
What is Social Learning Theory?
Learning through observing others and imitating behaviours that are rewarded
Outline the procedure of Bandura et al. (1961)
- Half the children were exposed to adult models interacting aggressively with a life-sized Bobo doll and half were exposed to non-aggressive models
- The aggressive model displayed physically aggressive acts towards the doll (e.g. hitting with a mallet, accompanied by verbal aggression such as saying ‘POW’)
- Following exposure to the model, children were frustrated by being shown attractive toys which they were not allowed to play with
- Children were taken to a room where, among other toys, there was a Bobo doll
Outline the findings of Bandura et al. (1961)
- Children who observed aggression reproduced physically and verbally aggressive behaviour resembling the model
- Children who didn’t observe aggression displayed no aggression toward the doll
- 1/3 of children who observed aggression repeated the model’s verbal responses
- None of the children who observed non-aggression made verbally aggressive remarks
FOLLOW UP - children who saw model get rewarded for aggression where more likely to show increased aggression in their own play
Define Modelling
Learning where individuals learn a particular behaviour by watching others perform that behaviour
Define Imitation
Using something or someone as a model and copying their behaviour
Define Identification
A form of influence. An individual adopts a behaviour because they want to become associated with a particular person or group
The extent to which an individual relates to a model and feels they are similar to that person (e.g. similar sex)
Define Vicarious Reinforcement
Learning that is not a result of direct reinforcement of behaviour, but by seeing someone else being reinforced for that behaviour.
Bandura and Walters (1963)
Define Mediational Processses
Internal mental processes that take exist between environmental stimuli and the individual’s response to the stimuli
A - attention (did the individual pay attention)
R - retention (can the individual remember the behaviour)
R - reproduction (is the individual able to reproduce the behaviour)
M - motivation (whether perceived rewards outweighs the perceived costs)
Bandura (1986)
Outline the procedure of Bandura, Ross and Ross (1961)
- 36 boys and 36 girls aged between 3 - 6
- 3 experimental groups: exposed to real-life aggressive model, exposed to on-film aggressive model, exposed to aggressive cartoon
- 1 control group: exposed to non aggressive model
Outline the findings of Bandura, Ross and Ross (1961)
- Children who observed an aggressive role model behaved more aggressively than the control group children who had observed a non-aggressive role model
What makes imitation more likely?
- If the observer witnesses the role model being rewarded for their behaviour
- If the observer identifies with the role model
- If the observer has high self-efficacy (observer is confident to imitate)
What are the mediational processes?
- Attention
- Reproduction
- Motor reproduction
- Motivation