the learning approach: social learning theory evaluation Flashcards
what is the importance of cognitive factors in learning
neither classical nor opernant conditioning can affect an adequate account of learning on their own
Humans and many animals store info about the behaviour of others and use this to make judgement about when it is appropriate to perform certain actions
Even Bandura stated that “learning would be exceedingly laborious not to mention hazardous if people had to rely solely on the effects of their own actions to inform them what to do”
Therefore, SLT provides a more comprehensive explanation of human learning by recognising the role of mediational processes
what does it mean when we say that SLT has over reliance on evidence from lab studies
Many of Bandura’s ideas were developed through observation of young children’s behaviour in lab settings
Lab studies are often criticised for their contrived nature where participants may respond to demand characteristics
e.g. the children may have simply strikes the doll because they were behaving in a way that they thought was expected
This means research may tell us little about how children learn (in regards to the Bobo doll it tells us little on how children learn aggressive behaviours in everyday life)
why is it a limitation that the SLT underestimates the influence of biological factors
Bandura makes little reference to he impact of biological factors on social learning
e.g. one consistent finding in the Bobo doll experiments was that boys were often more aggressive than girls regardless of the specifics of the experimental situation.
This may be explained by hormonal factors, such as differences in levels of testosterone, a hormone found in larger quantities in boys than girls and which is linked to increases in aggressive behaviour
This means that this important influence on behaviour is not accounted for in SLT
what does it mean when we say that we can use the SLT as an explanation for cultural differences behaviour
SLT theory has the advantage of being able to explain cultural differences in behaviour
Social learning principles can account for how children learn from other individuals around them, as well as through the media, and this can explain how cultural norms are transmitted through particular societies
This has provided useful in understanding a range of behaviours, such as how children come to understand their gender role
