Social learning theory Flashcards
What is the basic assumption of Social Learning Theory?
Behaviour is learned through observation and imitation of others within a social context.
What does Social Learning Theory emphasize compared to the behaviourist approach?
SLT emphasizes the role of cognitive factors in learning, unlike the behaviourist approach which focuses solely on stimulus-response links.
What is imitation in the context of Social Learning Theory?
Copying the behaviour of a role model observed in the environment.
What is identification in Social Learning Theory?
When an individual associates themselves with a role model and wants to be like them.
What is modelling in Social Learning Theory?
When a role model demonstrates a specific behaviour that is then imitated by an observer.
What is vicarious reinforcement in Social Learning Theory?
Learning that occurs by observing the consequences of another person’s behaviour, rather than directly experiencing the reinforcement.
What are the four mediational processes proposed by Bandura?
Attention, Retention, Motor Reproduction, and Motivation.
What does the attention mediational process involve?
Focusing on a role model and their behaviour to learn it.
What does the retention mediational process involve?
Storing the observed behaviour in memory to be recalled later.
What does the motor reproduction mediational process involve?
The physical ability to perform the behaviour observed.
What does the motivation mediational process involve?
The willingness to replicate the behaviour, often influenced by vicarious reinforcement.
What was Bandura’s famous research study on Social Learning Theory?
The Bobo doll experiment.
What did Bandura’s Bobo doll experiment demonstrate?
Children imitated aggressive behaviour toward the Bobo doll after observing a role model act aggressively.
What were the key findings of Bandura’s Bobo doll experiment?
Children were more likely to imitate aggressive behaviour if the model was rewarded, demonstrating the importance of vicarious reinforcement.
How does Social Learning Theory explain individual differences in behaviour?
Differences arise because people observe and imitate different role models based on their environment and experiences.
What was the aim of Bandura et al. (1961) study?
The aim was to investigate whether children would imitate aggression modeled by an adult and whether imitation was influenced by the model’s gender.
What was the method used in Bandura et al. (1961) study?
It was a laboratory experiment using 72 children aged 3-6 years from Stanford University Nursery.
How were participants grouped in Bandura’s study?
Participants were divided into three groups: one observed an aggressive model another a non-aggressive model and a control group saw no model.
What did the aggressive model do in Bandura’s study?
The aggressive model hit a Bobo doll with a mallet kicked it and verbally attacked it using phrases like “Sock him in the nose!”
What did the non-aggressive model do in Bandura’s study?
The non-aggressive model played calmly with toys and ignored the Bobo doll.
What were the findings regarding gender differences in Bandura’s study?
Boys imitated more physical aggression than girls but both genders were equally likely to imitate verbal aggression.
What was concluded from Bandura et al. (1961) study?
Children learn social behavior such as aggression through observation and imitation of models supporting Social Learning Theory.
What is a strength of Bandura’s study related to control?
The study had high control over variables such as ensuring children were equally aggressive at baseline using pre-testing.
What is a criticism of Bandura’s study regarding ecological validity?
The study was conducted in an artificial setting with a Bobo doll which may not represent real-world aggression.
What is a strength of Bandura’s study in terms of applications?
The study has practical applications such as informing policies on media content and understanding how role models influence behavior.
What is a limitation of Bandura’s study related to ethical concerns?
The study raised ethical issues such as exposing children to aggressive behavior which could have long-term effects.
How does Bandura’s study support Social Learning Theory?
It demonstrates that behavior can be learned through observation and imitation without direct reinforcement.
