social learning theory

• Social learning theory is based on the idea that we learn from observing others around us
• Strength of social learning theory is that it explains how people acquire behaviours without being directly rewarded/punished
• Both social learning theory and behavioural approach believe behaviours are learned and strengthened through reiforcement
• vicarious reinforcement is when a person learns a behaviour by observing another person and then imitating them, its a form of indirect learning
• the 4 meditational processes in the SLT are: attention, retention, motor reproduction and motivations
• in the SLT the mediational process attention refers to the extent to which we notice certain behaviours
• in the SLT the mediational process retention refers to how well the observed behaviour is remembered
• in the SLT the meditational process motor reproduction refers to the ability of the observe to perform the behaviour
• in the SLT the meditational process motivation refers to the observers will to perform the behaviour, this is often determined by if the behaviour was punished or rewarded
• An evaluative point of SLT is its real life applications of how it can account for how children learn through the media
• • The likelihood of the observed behaviours being imitated is increased if the role model has seen to be vicariously reinforced or rewarded 
• in social learning theory, learning occurs in the following stages: observer identifies themselves with a model, usually of same sex or older than them, role model displays a specific behaviour, which is then imitated with the observer
• • Mediational processes are the cognitive processes between stimulus and response: attention, retention, motivation and motor reproduction