Social learning theory

• What are the main assumptions of social learning theory?

  • Bandura agreed with behaviourists on the assumption that behaviour is learnt from experience
  • Proposed that people also learnt through observation and imitation of others that can occur directly or indirectly
• What are the stages of observational learning?

  1. Modelling: a role model models the behaviour
  2. Identification: observer identifies with the role model, recognising it is somebody they wish to be like
  3. Observation: observer notices the behaviour being modelled
  4. Imitation: observer imitates the behaviour for themselves, perhaps anticipating a reward
• What is vicarious reinforcement?

  • A form of indirect learning where an individual observes the behaviour of others, generally only if the behaviour is seen to be rewarded (reinforced) rather than punished
  • Learner more importantly observes the consequences of a certain behaviour
• What are the 4 mediational processes? (ARRM)

  1. Attention - the extent to which we notice certain behaviours
  2. Retention - how well the behaviour is remembered
  3. Reproduction - the ability of the observer to perform the behaviour
  4. Motivation - the will to perform the behaviour, often determined by whether or not it was rewarded or punished
• What is one strength of the social learning theory?

  • Cognitive factors: recognises important of cognitive factors in learning which neither classical nor operant conditioning offer an adequate account for
  • Humans and animals store information about others' behaviour and use this to make judgements about when it is appropriate to perform these themselves - Bandura (1977) said learning would be laborious if people relied solely on the effects of their own actions
  • Suggests SLT provides a more comprehensive explanation of human learning
• What is another strength of the social learning theory?

  • Real-world application: theory has been able to successfully explain cultural differences in behaviour as the stages of observational learning accounts for how children learn form others around them
  • This includes the media and how cultural norms are transmitted through particular societies, proving useful in understanding how children come to understand things like their gender roles
  • Increases the value of the approach by accounting for real-world behaviours
• What is one limitation of the social learning theory?

  • Contrived lab studies: Bandura's ideas have been collected through lab studies that are often criticised for having ppts. respond to demand characteristics
  • For example during the Bobo doll experiment the children may have been behaving in ways they thought was expected of them
  • Suggests research may tell us little about how children actually learn aggression in everyday life
• What is another limitation of the social learning theory?

  • Environmental determinism: SLT has been criticised for making too little reference to the influence of biological factors on learning
  • Bandura thought biological differenced influenced our learning potential but generally thought learning itself was environmentally determined
  • Recent research suggests observational learning may be the result of mirror neurons in the brain allowing us to empathise with and imitate other people - suggested biological influences are underemphasised in this theory
• What was Bandura's research?

  • Bandura et al. (1961) recorded children's behaviour who watched an adult behave aggressively with a Bobo doll, hitting it with a hammer and shouting abuse at it
  • Children, when later playing with the doll, behaved much more aggressively with it and other toys compared to those who observed a non-aggressive adult
  • Supports stages of observational learning and the role of mediational processes in learning
• What was a variation of Bandura's research?

  • Bandura and Walters (1963) showed children videos of an adult behaving aggressively with a Bobo doll, where one group saw the adult being praised and a second group saw the adult being punished
  • The first group showed much more aggression when given their own Bobo doll to play with, supporting the idea of vicarious reinforcement in learning