SLT to gender development Flashcards
how does the social learning theory suggest we learn behaviour?
According to the social learning theory, all behaviour, including gender, is learnt largely from observing others.
This suggests the influence of the environment is important in the development of gender roles. (e.g. the role of nurture)
who do we learn behaviours from?
- Significant others such as role models (teachers, parents)
- Wider culture and the media
who do individuals identify with?
Individuals observe these role models and identify with them, see them as being ‘like me’ or as individuals they ‘want to be’
what is direct reinforcement?
when children themselves are rewarded/punished for gender appropriate/inappropriate behaviour.
what is differential reinforcement?
it is when boys and girls are rewarded and punished for displaying different behaviours. E.g. boys are praised for carrying out rough play but girls are punished for this.
what is vicarious (indirect) reinforcement?
through seeing other people be rewarded or punished for displaying gender appropriate/inappropriate behaviour.
E.g. a boy observing another boy being praised for playing football so they are more likely to want to play football to get the same praise. A boy observing another boy getting told off for crying so they are less likely to cry as they don’t want to be told off.
what do observations of behaviour lead to?
Such observation will lead to imitation, especially if the role model is rewarded for their behaviour.
what is the meditational process attention and how does this link to gender development?
for imitation to take place, an individual must first attend to the role model. This is more likely if the model is similar to the observer or has some status.
e.g. a little boy may see his dad fixing cars so he pays attention to what he is doing
what is the meditational process retention and how does this link to gender development?
for observation to lead to imitation, the individual must retain the behaviours and attitudes that they observed.
e.g. the little boy remembers his dad picking out the tools and lying on his back underneath the car.
what is the mediational process motivation and how does this link with gender development?
for imitation to be more likely, the individual must see something in the model that he wants for himself, he must want the same rewards or to be just like him.
e.g. the little boy sees mum giving dad a big hug and calls him clever for successfully fixing the car.
what is the meditational process motor reproduction and how does this link to gender development?
an individual must be physically capable of copying the behaviour observed to be more certain that imitation will occur.
e.g. the little boy has the fine motor skills needed to pick up and manipulate the tools with a reasonable degree of success (e.g. they are not too heavy)
AO3: how is ‘supporting evidence’ a strength to the social learning theory as an explanation of gender development?
one strength to the social learning theory to explaining gender development is that there is evidence to support it. For example, Smith and Lloyd videoed 32 mothers playing with their child for 10 minutes. The babies were 4-6 months old and half the time were dressed in boys clothes and the second half in girls clothes regardless of their actual sex. They found that the boys were given hammer-shaped rattles and were encouraged to be adventurous and active, whereas, girls were given cuddly toys and often told they were pretty and were reinforced for being passive. This suggests that gender appropriate behaviour is stamped in from a very early age and therefore suggests that parents model gender appropriate behaviour and differentially reinforce the child accordingly.
AO3: how is ‘explains changes over time’ a strength to the social learning theory as an explanation of gender development?
one strength to the social learning theory as an explanation of gender development is that it explains any changes over time. For example, in the West, we no longer have such rigid distinctions between masculine and feminine behaviours. This is due to a shift in social expectations and cultural norms and this has led to new forms of acceptable gender-related behaviour. Therefore, these changes are better explained through the social learning theory compared to the biological approach.
AO3: how is ‘it ignores the role of biological factors’ a limitation to the social learning theory as an explanation of gender development?
one limitation to the social learning theory as an explanation of gender development is that it ignores the role of biological factors in the development of gender. For example, Mead (1935) carried out cross-cultural research that indicates there are some universal factors in the way that males and females behave such as males and aggression. This is despite the fact that the children in these societies will have different environments meaning different social learning will occur. Therefore, this suggests that there are universal similarities which highlights the fact that biology plays an important role in shaping gender and that learning from role models is deemed to be less of an influence.
AO3: how is ‘comparisons with the psychodynamic approach’ a limitation to the social learning theory as an explanation of gender development?
: one limitation to the social learning theory as an explanation of gender development is that it ignores the influences of the psychodynamic approach. This is because there are several differences between the social learning theory and the psychodynamic approach of gender development. One difference is that the social learning theory claims that the child will identify with a whole host of gender appropriate models, whereas, the psychodynamic approach says this is most likely the same-sex parent. Another difference is that the social learning theory focuses on the role of the concious cognitive mediational processes, whereas, the psychodynamic approach emphasises the role of the unconscious processes. Therefore, such differences undermine this explanation of gender development.
