Social Learning Theory

• What is Direct Learning?

  • Bandura proposed that aggressive acts are learned directly through operant conditioning (Positive/Negative reinforcement and punishment)
  • E.g. if a child angrily snatches a toy off another a child and gets away with it then the child could learn this aggressive behaviour direct positive reinforcement. The aggressive behaviour brings rewards
  • However if a child is punished for snatching the toy then this could put them off performing such an aggressive act in the future
• What is Indirect learning?

  • Most aggression is learned indirectly through observation and vicarious reinforcement
  • Observational learning explains most aggressive behaviour
  • A child observes models being aggressive and works out how aggressive behaviour is performed
  • Children also observe the consequences of a model's aggressive behaviour - if it is rewarded the child learns aggression can be effective in getting what they want. This is Vicarious Reinforcement
  • If there is negative consequences for the model then the behaviour is vicariously punished
• What is the role of Cognitive Factors in SLT?

  • Strict behaviourists would argue that learning simply occurs through stimulus-response mechanisms
  • In classical conditioning, for example, two stimuli may become associated with a response
  • The point is that this process is automatic
  • SLT differs because cognitive aspects are important too
• What are the four Cognitive Conditions required for SLT (Mediational Processes)

  • Attention
  • Retention
  • Reproduction
  • Motivation
• What is Attention?


  The observer notices model's aggressive actions
• What is Retention?

  Observer remembers model's aggressive behaviour and forms symbolic mental representation of it
• What is Reproduction?

  Observer repeats behaviour
• What is Motivation?

  Observer imitates the behaviour if they have an expectation that behaving aggressively will be rewarding
• What is Self-Efficacy?


  • Self-Efficacy means how confident we are that our actions will achieve a particular goal
  • Every time a child is successful in using aggression to gain rewards their self-efficacy grows
  • A child who hits other children to get hold of a toy will become more and more confident that this action brings results every time they're successful
  • They learn that they have the motor skills to do this and that it comes easy to them
  • Increased self-efficacy reinforces the behaviour
• Describe the Procedure of Bandura's Bobo Doll study:

  • Controlled lab experiment. Young children individually observed an adult model playing with toys including a Bobo doll.
  • Some children observed the model behaving aggressively towards the doll
  • There was a short period in which the children were not allowed to play with toys (creating frustration)
  • They were then taken to another room where there was a Bobo doll and other toys including ones the model had used
• Describe the findings of Bandura's Bobo Doll Study:

  • Without being instructed to do so, many of the children in the aggressive model condition imitated the behaviour they observed - the closeness of the imitation was often a direct copy including using specific objects and verbal phrases
  • Children in the non-aggressive model condition showed almost no aggression
• Limitations of Bandura's study:

  • Demand characteristics - Children may have guessed what was expected of them and the fact that Bobo dolls are designed to be hit
  • Low external validity - Artificial task and a lab experiment
  • Ignores biological differences - Boys were always the more aggressive ones compared to the girls
• Strength of the SLT approach to explaining aggression:

  • Evidence from real-life friendship groups
  • Poulin and Boivin
  • Found most aggressive boys formed friendship groups with other aggressive boys
  • These 'cliques' became training grounds for antisocial behaviour - These groups were mutually reinforcing aggression
  • Alliances were used with each other to gain resources through aggressive behaviours
  • They were exposed to regularly to models of physical aggression
  • They also gained reinforcement from the rewarding approval from the rest of the gang
• Strength of the SLT approach to explaining aggression:

  • Supporting Research
  • Philips - Boxing
  • Found that homicide rates in the USA nearly always went up the day after a major boxing match
  • This suggests that the general public's behaviour has been influenced by what they saw on TV
  • They are imitation the aggression that was rewarding the boxers

  HOWEVER

  This evidence is only correlational so we can't establish causation
• Limitation of SLT as an explanation of aggression:

  • SLT can't explain all aggression
  • Bandura's work provides a good explanation for proactive aggression (cold blooded)
  • However many children display reactive aggression. They habitually use aggression in the heat of the moment to retaliate against others
  • These children tend to be hostile, suspicious of others and do not show aggression for anything else but retribution
  • SLT can't explain this
• Limitation of SLT as an explanation of Aggression:

  • Can't explain cultural differences
  • Different cultures have different norms about which behaviours should be reinforced
  • The Kung San of the Kalahari Desert do not encourage aggression, therefore aggressive role models are unavailable for children and therefore observing vicarious reinforcement which is required fo for SLT
• Ethical Issues of SLT and aggression:

  • Exposing children to aggressive behaviour with knowledge that they may reproduce it raises ethical concerns
  • This experiment would not be allowed these days
  • Hence we can no longer test SLT using this method
• Nature Vs Nurture in SLT and aggression:

  • Suggests that nurture is the only thing involved in aggressive behaviour
  • So it is ignoring the role of biology
  • So SLT could be oversimplistic
• Real Life Applications of SLT and Aggression:

  • Watershed and ratings
  • Violence can influence the types of media that children are allowed to be exposed to
  • SLT has has an impact in protecting children around the world