Bandura

• Stage 1 - A child is sat in a corner doing an activity, an adult is in an opposite corner to them playing with toys in either an aggressive or non aggresive way
• Stage 2 - the children are allowed to play with these new toys but then they are taken away from them, this is called mild aggression arousal
• Stage 3 - there are non aggressive and aggressive toys in fixed positions in the room, with a one way mirror so the children are being watched, the child picks what toys they want to play with
• There are 24 aggressive models and 24 non aggressive models
• Out of the 24 models, 12 are male and 12 are female
• Each 12 models got given 6 male and 6 female participants
• Hypotheses - all correct

  Participants who see an aggressive model will perform more imitative aggressive acts

  Participants who see a non aggressive model will perform less aggressive acts

  Boys will be more aggressive than girls

  More likely to imitate the same sex model
• Theory on which the study is based - Social learning theory explains human behaviour as a constant interaction between cognitive, behavioural and environmental influences.

  Bandura showed how a child's aggressive tendencies can be strengthened through vicarious reinforcement (seeing others being rewarded for behaving aggressively).
• Background to the study - Previous research shows children readily imitate behaviour demonstrated by adult models if the model remains present.

  This study therefore exposed children to aggressive and non-aggressive adult models then tested how much imitative learning the children showed in a new situation in the absence of the model.
• Aim - To demonstrate that learning can occur through mere observation of a model and that imitation of learned behaviour can occur in the absence of that model.
• Research method - Participants matched by pre-rating them for aggressiveness. Rated on four five-point rating scales by the experimenter and a nursery school teacher, both well acquainted with the children. Scales measured 1= physical aggression, 2= verbal aggression, 3= aggression towards inanimate objects, 4= aggressive inhibition. Based on scores, participants arranged in triplets and randomly assigned to either one of the two experimental groups or to the control group.

  Each child participated in only one condition of the experiment.
• Sample - 72 children (36 boys and 36 girls), aged 37-69 months, from Stanford University Nursery school
• Outline of the procedure - Two adults, a male and female, served as role-models and one female experimentor conducted the study for all 72 children.
• Key findings - Behaviour of the male model exerted greater influence than the female model.
• Possible conclusions - Behaviour modelled by male adults has a greater influence on children's behaviour than behaviour modelled by a female adult.

  Both boys and girls are more likely to learn highly masculine-types behaviour such as physical aggression from a male adult rather than a female.

  Boys and girls are likely to learn verbal aggression from a same-sex adult.
• Limitations - The sample was not representative of the population because it consisted of middle class white American children who attended an elite private nursery school. Therefore, generalisability is limited.
• Strengths - This research provides evidence for social learning theory and supports the idea that we learn behaviours through observing others. It also shows how gender influences our learning.
• Aim - To investigate if children imitate an observed aggressive or non-aggressive role model.
• Research method - Matched pairs laboratory experiment
• Independent variables - Rolde-model: aggressive, passive or control condition: m v f model, m v f child.
• Dependent variables - Imitative and non-imitative physical and verbal aggression.