Approaches- Social Learning Theory

Question 1

Who proposed the social learning theory?

Answer 1

Bandura propose social learning theory as a development of the behaviourist approach.

He argued that classical and operant conditioning could not account for all human learning.

Question 2

What are the assumptions of social learning theory?

Answer 2

Learning through others:

Bandura agreed with the behaviourists that much of our behaviour is learned from experience but he argued that people learned through observation modelling and imitation of others.

Question 3

Give an introduction to social learning theory:

Answer 3

Social learning theory considers how both environmental and cognitive factors in interact to influence human learning and behaviour.
He believes that there are mental processes that live between the stimulus and response proposed by the behaviourist approach.
SLT forms of bridge between traditional behaviourism and the cognitive approach as it considers the mental processes.

Question 4

What is meant by role models?

Answer 4

Learning occurs to the observation of role models.

People are more likely to imitate a role model if they identify with them.

Modelling is a process that occurs during social learning. Modelling can occur when an observer imitate role model.

Question 5

What does social learning theory suggest learning occurs directly and indirectly from?

Answer 5

SLT suggest that learning occurs directly through classical conditioning but also indirectly through vicarious reinforcement.

Question 6

What is vicarious reinforcement?

Answer 6

Learning through observation of the consequences of actions for other people.
When a learner observe they identify with the role model receives reinforcement. The learner is motivated to imitate the behaviour as they had been reinforced themselves.

Question 7

What are the four mediational processes?

Answer 7

Attention.
Retention.
Motor reproduction.
Motivation.

Question 8

What is meant by mediational processes?

Answer 8

We do not automatically observe the behaviour of a role model and imitate it. There is some thought prior to imitation and this consideration is called mediational processes and occurs between observing the behaviour and imitating it.

Question 9

What is meant by the mediational process attention?

Answer 9

For a behaviour to be imitated it has to grab our attention.
Attention is extremely important in whether a behaviour has an influence in others imitating it.

Question 10

What is meant by the mediational process of retention?

Answer 10

The behaviour may be noticed but it is not always remembered which obviously prevent imitation.
It is important therefore that a memory of the behaviour is formed to be performed later by the observer

Question 11

What is meant by the mediational process motor reproduction?

Answer 11

This is the ability of the observer to perform the behaviour.

Question 12

What is meant by the mediational process motivation?

Answer 12

The rewards and punishment that follow of behaviour will be considered by the observer.
If the perceived rewards outweigh the perceived cost then the behaviour will be more likely to be imitated by the observer.

Question 13

What was the aim of Banduras bobo doll study?

Answer 13

Aim: Bandura (1961) conducted a controlled experiment study to investigate if social social behaviours can be acquired by observation and imitation.

Question 14

What was the sample of Banduras bobo doll study?

Answer 14

Sample: Bandura Ross and Ross tested 36 boys 36 girls from Stanford University nursery school aged between 3 to 6 years old.

The researchers pretested the children for how aggressive they were by observing the children in the nursery and judge their aggressive behaviour on four five rating scales.

It was then possible to match the children in each group so that they had similar levels of aggression in there every day behaviour they experiment is therefore an example of a matched pairs design .

To test the inter-rater-reliability of the observers 51 of the children were rated by two observers independently and their ratings were compared. These ratings showed a very high reliability correlation which suggested that the observers had a good agreement about the behaviour of the children.

Question 15

What was the method of Banduras bobo doll study?

Answer 15

Method: lab experiment was used in which the independent variable(the type of model) was manipulated in three conditions:
Aggressive model is shown to 24 children .
Non-aggressive model is shown 24 children.
No model is shown to 24 children.

Question 16

What were the results of Banduras bobo doll study?

Answer 16

Results:
Children who observe the aggressive model made far more imitative aggressive responses.
Boys were more likely to imitate same-sex models than girls
Boys imitated more physically aggressive act than girls. There was little difference in verbal aggression between boys and girls.

Question 17

What was the conclusion?

Answer 17

Bobo doll experiment demonstrated the children are able to learn social behaviour such as aggression through the process of observation learning through watching the behaviour of another person. The findings support Banduras (1977) social learning theory. This study has important implication for the effect of media violence on children.

Question 18

[AO3 PEEL]
What is one strength of the key concept of similarity of role models in a peel structure?

Answer 18

P: one strength of the key concept of the importance of similarity of role models is it plentiful research support.
E: Fox and Bailenson (2009) the humans were more likely to imitate computer – generated ‘ virtual humans’ who were similar to themselves and Rushton and Campbell (1977) found that same – six modelling significantly increased the number of female observers who donated blood.
E: these studies support the idea that we are more likely to model behaviour when the role model is more identifiable with ourselves.
L: this empirical evidence as valid to a key principle of this theory.

Question 19

[AO3 PEEL]
What is the strength of SLT in a peel structure?

Answer 19

P: A strength of SLT is that it is and more holistic approach to studying human behaviour than traditional behaviourism.
E: this is because the thought processes are taken into account with the mediational processes and therefore the approach acknowledges the role that plays in whether our behaviour is to be imitated or not.
E: As SLT provides a more comprehensive explanation of human learning by recognising the role of cognitive process.
L: a can therefore better explain many more complex social behaviours such as gender roles and moral behaviour than models of learning based on simple reinforcement.

Question 20

[AO3 PEEL]
What is a limitation of social learning theory in a peal structure?

Answer 20

P: A limitation of social learning theory is that it is not a full explanation for all behaviour as it does not consider other factors such as a biological influence.
E: for example, an individual may be more aggressive due to higher levels of testosterone rather than through observational learning or more anxious due to lower levels of serotonin.
E: this is particularly the case when there is no apparent role model in the persons life imitate for a given behaviour.
L: therefore social learning theory does not offer full comprehensive explanation to human behaviour and needs to be used in conjunction with other approaches.

Question 21

[AO3 PEEL]
What is another limitation of Banduras research in a peel structure?

Answer 21

P: limitation of Banduras research is that the methodology has been extensively criticised as Bandura made use of the experimental laboratory method which is artificial strictly controlled and contrived in its very nature.
E: therefore the children may have been acting in an aggressive way towards the Bobo doll because that is what they thought was expected of them rather than it’s being a genuine and new learned behaviour.
E: there is the possibility of demand characteristics occurring whereby the children picked up on queues in the environment that were measuring aggression and adjusted their behaviour accordingly.
L: this could lower the internal validity of the results of which the theory was based on.