social learning theory

Question 1

what is the social learning theory

Answer 1

proposed by Albert Bandura which emphasizes the importance of learning through observation, modelling and imitating behaviours , it considers how both the environment and cognitive factors interact to influence human learning and behaviour

Question 2

outline Banduras bobo doll study method

Answer 2

1) Banduras Bobo doll study
- 36 boys and 36 girls aged between 3-6 years old were pre-tested on how aggressive they were by observing them in nursery
- placed in a room containing toys and allowed to play for 10 mins
- they then either watched a male or female model behave aggressively towards a bobo doll, using hammers or shouting etc
- other condition they were shown a non-aggressive model who played in a quiet and subdued manner
- control group who were not exposed to a model at all

Question 3

outline the results of the Bobo doll study

Answer 3

• children who observed the aggressive model made far more imitative aggressive responses than those in the nonaggressive and control groups
• the girls in the aggressive model showed more physical aggressive responses if the model was male but more verbal aggressive responses if the model was female
• boys are more like to intimate same-sex models compared to girls
• boys imitated more physically aggressive acts than girls

Question 4

what are the four mediational processes proposed by bandura

Answer 4

1) attention
2) retention
3) reproduction
4) motivation

Question 5

outline the mediational processes of attention

Answer 5

individuals need to pay attention to behavior and its consequences. For a behavior to be imitated it has to take our attention

Question 6

outline the mediational process of retention

Answer 6

refers to how well the behavior is remembered, the behavior may be noticed but not always remembered which prevents its imitation

Question 7

outline the mediational process of reproduction

Answer 7

the ability to perform the behavior which is modeled, we may see behavior on a daily basis that we want to imitate but it isn’t always possible, we are limited by our physical ability,

Question 8

outline the mediational process of motivation

Answer 8

refers to our will to perform the behavior, if the rewards of the behavior modelled outweigh the costs then the behavior is likely to be imitated

Question 9

evaluate the social learning theory

Answer 9

1) nature vs nurture
2) supported by Banduras bobo doll study
3) based on lab-based experiments so lacks ecological validity
4) ethical issues - exposing children to aggressive behaviors with the knowledge they may reproduce these behaviors ( protection from harm)
5) practical application- understanding criminal behavior, probability of a criminal increase when exposed to models who commit crimes , supported by research which found this was the strongest cause of violence in a lit review

Question 10

what is vicarious reinforcement

Answer 10

when a person learns by observing the consequences of another person’s behavior such as reward or punishment

Question 11

define model

Answer 11

a form of learning where individuals learn a behaviour by observing another individual performing it

Question 12

define imitation

Answer 12

the action of using someone or something as a model and copying the behaviour

Question 13

outline identification

Answer 13

a form of influence where and individual adopts an attitude of behavior as they want to be associated with a particular person or group