Social Cognitive Theory

BANDURA SOCIAL COGNITIVE THEORY

A cognitive theory that stresses the role of the social environment in learning.

The Role of Self-Regulation

A key assumption of social cognitive theory is that people desire "to control the events that affect their lives' and to perceive themselves as agents (Bandura, 1997, p.1).

SKINNER'S RADICAL BEHAVIORISM

A person's response or behavior is cued or prompted by a stimulus that precedes it, the antecedent, and then shaped or controlled by the stimuli that follows or the consequence.

APPLICATION

Ames' (1992) argument supports these measures by claiming that teachers, through their interactions with students, telegraph goal messages via instructional practices and discourses. These perceived environmental goal messages influence students' personal goal adoption

Social Cognitive Processes

An early social cognitive perspective viewed self-regulation as comprising three processes: self-observation (or self-monitoring), self-judgement, and self-reaction - Bandura, 1986.

TRIADIC RECIPROCAL CAUSATION

Bandura (1982, 1977, 1986, 2001) discussed human behavior within a framework of triadic reciprocality, or reciprocal interactions among behaviors, environmental variables and personal factors such as cognitions.

Sources of Collective Efficacy Information

Bandura (1986, 1997) postulated that the four sources of self-efficacy information that are critical for individuals are also fundamental in the development of collective teacher efficacy.

Emotional and Physiological States.

Bandura (1997) hypothesized that self-efficacy beliefs are informed by emotional and physiological states such as anxiety, stress, fatigue, and mood.

FOUR SOURCES OF SELF-EFFICACY

Bandura's (1977) self-efficacy theory claims that self-efficacy beliefs arise from and are altered through four sources: mastery experiences, vicarious experiences, verbal persuasion, and physiological arousal.

INTRODUCTION - ERTMER & NEWBY 1993

Ertmer & Newby caution us against limiting ourselves to one particular learning theory, but to utilize an eclectic perspective that draws from several theories to best meet the needs of the learning context and the group of learners.

BEHAVIORISM VS. SOCIAL COGNITIVE THEORY 2

From the social cognitive perspective, human behavior varies based on the environment including other participants in the environment, rather than than internal drives or rewards and punishers.

ENACTIVE LEARNING

Involves learning from the consequences of one's actions. Behaviors that result in successful consequences are retained; those that lead to failures are refined or discarded (Bandura, 1986; Schunk, 2012).

Self-Judgement

Self-judgement refers to comparing present performance level with one's goal. Allowing students to set goals for learning enhances goal commitment and promotes self-efficacy

Mastery Experience

Mastery Experience is the interpreted result of one's own previous attainments, or mastery experience. In school, for example, once students complete an academic task, they interpret and evaluate the results obtained, and judgments of competence are created or revised according to those interpretations.

Collective Efficacy Mastery Experience

Mastery experiences are important for organizations. As a group, teachers experience successes and failures.

Self-Observation

Self-observation, or the involvement of judging observed aspects of one's behavior against standards and reacting positively or negatively, is similar to self-monitoring

VICARIOUS LEARNING

Much human learning occurs vicariously, or without overt performance by the learner, at the time of learning. Common sources of vicarious learning are observing or listening to models (Bandura, 1969).

TRIADIC RECIPROCAL CAUSATION EXAMPLE

Much of the time the three factors interact: First, a teacher presents a lesson to the class and they think about what the teacher says - environment influences cognition - a personal factor. Second, students who don't understand raise their hand -cognition influences behavior - and the teacher reviews the point or behavior influences environment. Third, the teacher gives students work to accomplish or environment influences cognition, which influences behavior.

Collective Efficacy Affective States.

Organizations have affective states. Just as individuals react to stress, so do organizations. Efficacious organizations can tolerate pressure and crises and continue to function without severe negative consequences

Collective Teacher Efficacy

Perceptions of teachers in a school that their efforts as a whole will positively affect students. Teachers who work collaboratively to achieve common goals (performance mastery) and who benefit from mentors as role models (vicarious information) are apt to feel collectively self-efficacious (Bandura, 1997; Pajares, 1997)Goddard, Hoy, and Woolfolk Hoy (2000)

Self-Reactions

Self-reactions to goal progress motivate behavior Making progress, along with satisfaction from accomplishing the goal, enhances self-efficacy and sustains motivation.

Self-Regulation Defined

Self-regulation (self-regulated learning), or the process whereby individuals activate and sustain behaviors, cognitions, and affects, which are systematically oriented toward the attainment of goals (Zimmerman & Schunk, 2004).

SELF-EFFICACY & SCHOOL LEARNING

Researchers (Pajares, 1996; Schunk & Pajares, 2006) have obtained the hypothesized effects of self-efficacy on choice, effort, persistence, and achievement.

SELF-EFFICACY DEFINED

Self-efficacy (efficacy expectations) refers to personal beliefs about one's capabilities to learn or perform actions at designated levels (Bandura, 1986)

GAUGING SELF-EFFICACY

Self-efficacy is a belief about what one is capable of doing; it is not the same as knowing what to do. In gauging self-efficacy, individuals assess their skills and their capabilities to translate those skills into actions.

Collective Efficacy Social Persuasion

Social persuasion is another means of strengthening a faculty's conviction that they have the capabilities to achieve their goals. Talks, workshops, professional development opportunities, and feedback about achievement can influence teachers.

SELF-EFFICACY INFLUENCES CHOICE OF ACTIVITIES

Students with low self-efficacy for learning may avoid attempting tasks; those who judge themselves efficacious should participate more eagerly (Pajares, 1996)

Teacher Self-Efficacy

Teacher efficacy, a belief about whether one can influence student outcomes, is a context-specific construct that is comprised of two different beliefs: personal teaching efficacy and general teaching efficacy

Assessment of Teaching Competence.

Teachers analyze the teaching task in conjunction with their assessment of the teaching competency of the faculty; in fact, teachers make explicit judgments of the teaching competence of their colleagues in light of an analysis of the teaching task in their specific school.

Analysis of the Teaching Task.

Teachers analyze what constitutes successful teaching in their school, what barriers or limitations must be overcome, and what resources are available to achieve.

Collective Efficacy Vicarious Experience

Teachers do not rely on direct experience as the only source of information about their collective efficacy. They listen to stories about achievements of their colleagues as well as success stories of other schools.

CLASSROOM LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS & SELF-EFFICACY

The psychological climate of the classroom can significantly influence students' task-choices, competence, and self-efficacy beliefs

BEHAVIORISM VS. SOCIAL COGNITIVE THEORY

The social cognitive perspective differs from that of the behaviorist perspective because it holds that people are capable of self-direction instead of external influences such as, reward and punishment, the cognitive theorist sees the person's thought process as a major factor that affects motivation and actions.

Social Persuasion

The social persuasions that students receive from others serve as a third source of self-efficacy. Encouragement from parents, teachers, and peers whom students trust can boost students' confidence in their academic capabilities.

APPLICATION

The teacher-learning model for the intervention would take the form of a "mini-discourse community" Teachers could challenge their assumptions of collective efficacy by drawing on existing experience in their classrooms.

Major Influences on Collective Teacher Efficacy

Two key elements in the development of collective teaching efficacy: analysis of the teaching task and assessment of teaching competence. Both domains are assessed in terms of whether the organization has the capacities to succeed in teaching students. The interactions of these assessments lead to the shaping of collective teacher efficacy in a school. Tschannen-Moran et al. (1998)

Vicarious Experience

Vicarious Experience In addition to interpreting the results of their actions, students build their efficacy beliefs through the vicarious experience of observing others. For example, students can gauge their capabilities in relation to the performance of others.