social learning theory Flashcards
what did bandura believe?
he agreed with the behaviourists that behaviour is learnt from experience, however his social learning theory proposed a different way, through observation and imitation of others.
what is social learning theory?
a way of explaining behaviour that includes both direct and indirect reinforcement, combining learning theory with the role of cognitive factors.
what is vicarious reinforcement?
for indirect learning to take place and individual observes the behaviour of others, the learner my imitate this behaviour but in general imitations only occurs if the behaviour is seen as rewarded.
what is a mediational process?
cognitive factors which influence the learning and come between stimulus and response.
what are the four mediational processes?
attention- the extent to which we notice certain behaviours
retention- how well the behaviour is remembered
motor reproduction- the ability of the observer to perform the behaviour
motivation- the will to perform the behaviour, determined by wether the behaviour is rewarded or punished.
what is identifiation?
people are more likely to imitate people they identify with.
what is modelling?
the process of imitating a role mode (a person they identify with)
how does one become a role model?
if they are seen to possess similar characteristics to the observer and/or are attractive and have high status. role models may nit necessarily be physically present in the environment, this has important implications for the influence of media in behaviour.
explain study A of banduras research
(1961) recorded the behaviour of children who watched adult behave in a aggressive way towards a bobo doll, adult hit doll with hammer and shouted abuse at it.
when children were later observed playing with various toys including a bobo doll, they behaved much more aggressively towards the bobo doll and the other toys compared to those who had observed non aggressive adults
explain study B of bandura research
showed videos where an adult behaved aggressively towards a bobo doll. one group saw the adult praised for the behaviour, a second saw the adult punished for the aggression , third (conrol) group saw aggression without any consequences.
order of aggression most to least
first third second
evaluate slt
s- recognises the importance of cognitive factors, neither classical or operant conditioning can offer an adequate amount of learning on their own. humans and animals store information about the behaviour of others and make judgements, suggests slt provides a more comprehensive explanation of human learning.
counterpoint
slt has been criticised for making too little reference of biological factors. although bandura claimed natural biological differences influenced our learning potential, he thought that learning itself was determined by the environment.
c- evidence was gathered through lab studies. often criticised for thei contrived nature where ppt may respond to demand characteristics. the main purpose of a bobo doll is to strike it so children were behaving in a away they thought was expected. research tells us little about how children actually learn aggression in everyday life.
s- has real world applications, slt has been applied to a range of real world behaviours. able to explain cultural differences in behaviour. principles such as modelling, imitation and reinforcement can account for how children learn from people around them, including the media, this cam explain how cultural norms are transmitted through particular societies. provided understanding in how children come to understand gender roles. increases value of approach.
