Social Learning Theory

• During the 1960s, Bandura conducted a series of experiments on observational learning, collectively known as the Bobo Doll experiments.

  
  

  His aim was to investigate if social behaviours (i.e. aggression) can be acquired by observation and imitation.
• Bandura's sample consisted of 36 boys and 36 girls from the Stanford University Nursery School aged between 3 and 6 years old.
• The researchers pretested the children for how aggressive they were by observing them in the nursery, judging their aggressive behaviour on four 5-point rating scales.

  
  

  It was then possible to match the children in each group so that they had similar levels of aggression in their conventional behaviours. The experiment is therefore an example of a matched pairs design.
• To test the inter-rater reliability of the observers, 51 of the children were rated by two observers independently, and their ratings were compared. These ratings showed a very high-reliability correlation (r = 0.89), which suggested that the observers had a good agreement about the behaviour of the children.
• 𝘽𝘼𝙉𝘿𝙐𝙍𝘼'𝙎 𝙈𝙀𝙏𝙃𝙊𝘿:

  A lab experiment was used, in which the independent variable (the type of model) was manipulated in three conditions:

  • aggressive model is shown to 24 children
  • non-aggressive model is shown to 24 children
  • no model is shown to 24 children (control condition)

  In each experimental condition, 6 boys and 6 girls were shown a male model and 6 boys and 6 girls were shown a female model.
• 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗚𝗘 𝟭: 𝗠𝗢𝗗𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗚

  Children were individually shown into a room containing toys and played in a corner for ten minutes while either:

  • 24 children watched a male or female model behaving aggressively towards a Bobo doll. The adults attacked the doll in a distinctive manner - they used a hammer or threw the doll around, shouting "pow" and "boom".
  • Another 24 children were exposed to a non-aggressive model who played in a quiet and subdued manner for ten minutes (ignoring the Bobo doll).
  • The final 24 children were used as a control group and not exposed to any model at all.
• 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗚𝗘 𝟮: 𝗔𝗚𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗦𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗔𝗥𝗢𝗨𝗦𝗔𝗟

  All the children (including the control group) were subjected to a "mild aggression arousal". Each child was separately taken into a room with relatively attractive toys. As soon as the child started the play with the toys, the experimenter told them that these were the experimenter's very best toys and she had decided to reserve them for the other children.
• 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗚𝗘 𝟯: 𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗗𝗘𝗟𝗔𝗬𝗘𝗗 𝗜𝗠𝗜𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡

  The next room contained some aggressive (e.g. mallet, dart guns, 3-foot Bobo doll) and non-aggressive toys (e.g. tea set, crayons, plastic farm animals).

  
  

  The child was in the room for 20 minutes, and their behaviour was observed and rated through a one-way mirror. Observations were made at 5-second intervals, therefore producing 240 response units for each child.

  
  

  Other behaviours that didn't imitate that of the model were also recorded (e.g. punching the doll on the nose).
• 𝙍𝙀𝙎𝙐𝙇𝙏𝙎:

  • children who observed the aggressive model made far more imitative aggressive responses

  
  

  • there was more partial and non-imitative aggression among those children who had observed aggressive behaviour

  
  

  • girls in the aggressive model condition showed more physically aggressive responses when the model was male, and more verbally aggressive responses if the model was female

  
  

  • boys were more likely to imitate same-sex models than girls

  
  

  • boys imitated more physically aggressive acts than girls
• 𝘾𝙊𝙉𝘾𝙇𝙐𝙎𝙄𝙊𝙉:

  The Bobo Doll experiment demonstrated that children are able to learn social behaviour such as aggression through the process of observational learning (through watching the behaviour of another person).

  The findings support Bandura's (1977) Social Learning Theory. This study has important implications for the effects of media violence on children.
• (𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗚𝗧𝗛)

  Experiments are the only means by which cause and effect relationships can be established. Thus, it could be demonstrated that the model did have an effect on the child's subsequent behaviour because all variables other than the independent variable were controlled.
• (𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗚𝗧𝗛)

  Lab studies allow for the precise control of variables. Many variables were controlled, such as the gender of the model, the time the children observed the model, the behaviour of the model, etc. This increases the internal validity of the study.
• (𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗚𝗧𝗛)

  Experiments can be repeated if standardised procedures and instructions are used. Bandura replicated his original study two years later (1963) with slight changes (such as using a video of the model) and found similar results.
• (𝗟𝗜𝗠𝗜𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡)

  Many psychologists are highly critical of laboratory studies of imitation - they tend to have low ecological validity. The situation involves the child and the adult model, which is a very limited social situation, and there is no interaction between them at any point. The model and child are also strangers, which is unlike 'normal' modelling between family members.
• (𝗟𝗜𝗠𝗜𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡)

  Cumberbatch (1990) found that children who had not played with a Bobo doll before were five times as likely to imitate the aggressive behaviour than those who were familiar with it. He claims that the novelty value of the doll is what made the children more likely to imitate behaviour, and therefore Bandura did not test what he was aiming to test (low internal validity).
• (𝗟𝗜𝗠𝗜𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡)

  The children's behaviours were measured almost immediately. With such snapshot studies, we cannot discover if a single exposure can have long-term effects. This is also unethical due to the problem of any long-term consequences on the children. Although unlikely, it is impossible to be certain.
• (𝗟𝗜𝗠𝗜𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡)

  The dolls were unrealistic and did not look like people; the way in which the experiment was conducted was in order to maximise results as aggression towards real people may be different. This means the experiment was not genuine and therefore irrelevant to real life.
• 𝙑𝙄𝘾𝘼𝙍𝙄𝙊𝙐𝙎 𝙍𝙀𝙄𝙉𝙁𝙊𝙍𝘾𝙀𝙈𝙀𝙉𝙏:

  Bandura (1965) used a similar experimental set up to his original study, however showed consequences to the model's aggression instead.

  One group saw the model's aggression being rewarded (given sweets and a drink), another group saw the model being punished for the aggression (scolding), and the third group saw no specific consequences (control condition).

  When allowed to enter the playroom, children in the reward / control conditions imitated more aggressive acts as the children in the punishment condition expected negative consequences.
• Reinforcement gained by watching another person is known as vicarious reinforcement.
• Behaviour can be learnt through conditioning, but also through observing & imitating or direct tuition (being told what to do).
• The SLT argues that people learn either directly, through classical and operant conditioning, or indirectly, through observation and imitation of others within a social context.
• Vicarious reinforcement occurs when another individual's behaviour is observed to be rewarded and therefore is copied (Bandura, 1961).
• People are more likely to imitate the behaviour of others with whom they identify (role models) through the process of modelling. A person becomes a role model if they are seen to possess similar characteristics, are attractive, and/or have a higher social status.
• Mediational processes are cognitive factors that influence learning and come between stimulus and response: it is not just observing and imitating because humans have a choice.
• 𝗠𝗘𝗗𝗜𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗟 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗖𝗘𝗦𝗦𝗘𝗦: 𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗜𝗡𝗚

  • ATTENTION:

  the extent to which we notice certain behaviours

  • RETENTION:

  how well we remember behaviour
• 𝗠𝗘𝗗𝗜𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗟 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗖𝗘𝗦𝗦𝗘𝗦: 𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗖𝗘

  • MOTOR REPRODUCTION:

  the ability of the observer to perform/imitate the observed behaviour (not always applicable, e.g. watching professional sports)

  • MOTIVATION:

  the will to perform the behaviour, often linked to reward and punishment
• Social Learning theory

  Learning conditioned through observation and imitation of others
• Bandura's Research on Social Learning theory was pioneered by Albert Bandura
• The Bobo Doll Study

  1. Bandura et al. (1961) wanted to examine the effect role models have on behaviour

  2. To examine if the sex of the model affected the participants and if same-sex models had a more significant influence on behaviour

  3. To examine the effect of the continual influence of the model on behaviour
• Experimental Procedure

  1. 72 participants, 36 girls and 36 boys, aged between 37-69 months

  2. 8 experimental groups, with 6 children in each

  3. Subdivided groups based on whether they observed a same-sex or opposite-sex role model

  4. 2 adult role models, 1 female and 1 male

  5. Half of the groups observed an aggressive role model and half observed a non-aggressive role model

  6. Participants observed the model's behavior with the Bobo Doll and other toys for around 10 minutes

  7. Participants were then taken to another room with toys, causing initial aggression arousal

  8. Participants were allowed to play with toys, including aggressive and non-aggressive ones, and were observed for 20 minutes
• Results showed that children who observed aggressive behavior were more likely to be aggressive
• Boys were more physically aggressive, while girls displayed more verbal aggression
• Children were more likely to imitate the behavior of the same-sex role model
• Evaluation of Bandura (1961)

  1. Well-controlled observational study with a clear independent variable

  2. Ethical issues with young children being exposed to aggressive adult behavior

  3. Difficulty in judging behavior due to the design of Bobo dolls

  4. Study only shows short-term effects of observed aggression
• Use your knowledge of social learning theory to explain why a company may want to use a famous rugby player in an advert.

  • people are more likely to identify with celebrity role models
  • people are more likely to imitate the role models they identify with (by buying the product they are using in the advert)
• Explain how an advert featuring a celebrity doing something funny may influence its viewers’ mediational processes.

  • 𝘼𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣: recognition of a celebrity captures our attention
  • 𝙍𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣: the advert is funny, eg ‘(stem)’, strengthening the memory = more likely to be encoded or stored in LTM
  • 𝙈𝙤𝙩𝙤𝙧 𝙍𝙚𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙙𝙪𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣: the actions performed are easy to replicate
  • 𝙈𝙤𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣: the viewer will want to perform the behaviour as the ‘boy claps’ providing positive vicarious reinforcement.
• What was the main aim of Bandura's Bobo doll experiment?

  To demonstrate that children learn aggressive behaviors through observation and imitation of adults
• What concept did Bandura's Bobo doll experiment primarily demonstrate?

  Observational learning
• How did Bandura's experiment challenge prevailing theories at the time?

  It challenged behaviorist theories by showing the importance of cognitive processes in learning
• How many children participated in Bandura's Bobo doll experiment?

  72 children (36 boys and 36 girls)