Social Psych - SLT Flashcards
Direct learning
Bandura acknowledged that aggression can be learned directly through OPERANT CONDITIONING, involving POSITIVE and NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT and PUNISHMENT.
However, he argued that an indirect mechanism - observational learning - accounts for social learning of most aggressive behaviours.
Modelling
Children (and adults to an extent) learn aggressive behaviours through observing aggressive models. These may be live models such as parents or symbolic models such as characters in the media.
This allows them to work out how the aggressive behaviours are performed.
Imitation
Imitation of modelled aggression depends on identification, vicarious reinforcement and mediational processes.
Identification
Imitation is more likely if you identify with the aggressive role model. This is when an observer wants to be like the role model due to, for example, being the same sex / status.
Vicarious reinforcement
A child is also more likely to imitate aggressive behaviour if they see a model being rewarded for showing that behaviour. The child learns that aggression can be an effective means of getting what you want.
Aggression can also be vicariously punished (if a model’s use of aggression is punished, an observing child is less likely to imitate that behaviour).
Mediational processes
These are the cognitive conditions necessary for observational learning:
- Attention: The observer must pay attention to the model’s aggressive actions.
Retention: the observer must remember the aggressive actions.
- Reproduction: the observer must decide whether they are physically capable of performing the aggressive actions.
- Motivation: the will to perform aggressive behaviour is often determined by whether the behaviour was rewarded or punished. If it was rewarded then aggression is more likely.
Self efficacy
This is the extent to which we believe our actions will achieve a desired goal.
A child’s confidence in their ability to be aggressive grows as they learn that aggression can bring rewards. They become confident that because their aggression has been effective in the past, it will continue to be so in the future.
+ P - Supporting evidence for Bandura’s theory of aggression
E - Poulin and Boivin found that aggressive boys were more likely to form friendships with other aggressive boys. They say that these relationships are training grounds for antisocial behaviour.
E - They were also found to be long lasting and reinforce aggression; they were used to gain resources of aggression and reinforcement from the approval of others.
L - This provides support for the influence of reinforcement, observation and rewards, in causing aggression.
- P - It cannot explain all aggression
E - The SLT theory of aggression explains proactive aggression and children with self efficacy - those who have confidence that there will be rewards.
E - Although this supports SLT, reactively aggressive children use aggression to retaliate in the heat of the movement. They are often hostile and suspicious of people and are not only aggressive for retribution, bit also for reward.
L - SLT cannot explain all of this and thus is not a complete theory of aggression.
- P - Methodological issues with Bandura’s study
E - The Bobo doll is not a real human, and there are no risks of retaliation.
E - This suggests that the conditions do not accurately reflect those involved in real aggression. Furthermore, the study was conducted in a laboratory condition.
L - Thus the study lacks mundane realism, and the findings should be used carefully when explaining aggression.
