Banduras Social Learning Theory

Question 1

What is banduras social learning theory?

Answer 1

• Individuals imitate the behaviour in their social environment.
• People observe their peers and family, and then use their conduct as a role model that is then imitated.

Question 2

What is a key concept of Banduras theory?

Answer 2

• Children will imitate the social behaviours they are exposed to. (Boob doll study)

Question 3

Who are children most influenced by?

Answer 3

• Children are most influenced by adults

Question 4

What is observational learning?

Answer 4

• Children will imitate or reject certain behaviours based on the consequences they see for those adults.

Question 5

What was the Bobo doll experiment?

Answer 5

• Bandura made videos of adults beating up a bobo doll.
• He then showed a group of children the videos.
• The children were then given a bobo doll, and they treated the doll the same way as the adults.

Question 6

What was Bandura trying to discover about the children?

Answer 6

If the children would imitate the adults behaviour

Question 7

What did the childrens behaviour show?

Answer 7

That children learn through other people/adults

Question 8

What criticism did Bandura receive about the experiment? How did he change it after the criticism?

Answer 8

• The children didn’t know how to play with the doll beforehand
• He showed some children the video and let them play with doll with children who hadn’t seen it.
• The children who had seen the video behaved more violently than those that hadn’t.

Question 9

Positives of Banduras theory?

Answer 9

• His theory is based on experiments rather than a correlational study.
• Reliable
• Practical application

Question 10

Weaknesses of Banduras theory?

Answer 10

-Ethical issues - the children are exposed to violence with the knowledge that they will imitate that behaviour
- not valid
- low ecological validity