social learning theory

• why is the social learning theory view on reductionism

  It reduced complex learning to a handful of key processes like imitation and modelling, but they do place emphasis on cognitive factors that mediate learning and the interaction between these and external influences
• evaluations of the social learning theory

  Strength: Unlike behaviourism, it recognises cognitive factors with Bandura saying learning would be laborious and hazardous if we had to rely on our own actions

  Weakness: Ignores biological factors like mirror neurons which allow us to empathise and imitate others

  Weakness: Demand characteristics such as the purpose of a Bobo doll being to hit it so children just behaving in an expected way

  Strength: Applies to cultural norms

  Strength: Reciprocal determinism - we’re influenced by the environment but our behaviour can influence it
• who proposed the social learning theory ?

  Albert Bandura
• where did the social learning theory agree with behaviourists ?


  behaviour is learned from experience
• how does the social learning theory believe behaviours is learnt 


  both directly through conditioning but also indirectly through observation and imitation of others
• what is vicarious reinforcement 


  where an individual observers the behaviour of others being rewarded they repeat that behaviour themselves
• what are mediational processes ? 


  cognitive factors involved in learning determining whether a new response will be acquired
• what are the 4 mediational processes

  1. attention
  2. retention
  3. motor reproduction
  4. motivation
• what does the SLT think about the learning and performance of behaviour in contrast to the behaviourist approach


  they need not occur together - observed behaviour can be stored by the observer and reproduced at a later time
• what is identification 


  a desire to be associated with a person or group because they possess certain desirable characteristics
• Who is the person someone identifies with called?

  a role model
• what is the process of imitating a role model?

  modelling
• what was banduras procedure ?

  Young children watched an adult behave in an aggressive way towards a bobo doll, hitting it with a hammer and shouting abuse at it
• what did bandura find

  When the children were later observed playing with a Bobo doll, they behaved much more aggressively than those who observed a non-aggressive adult
• what was banduras second procedure

  Children shown videos of adults behaving aggressively towards a Bobo doll, and the adult was either praised, punished or no consequence
• what was banduras second study’s finding

  The group where the adult wad praised showed the most aggression, then the no consequence group, then the punishment group