Social-Cultural Approach- 5. 4 Social Cognitive Theory

How many independent variables were there in Bandura's (1961) study? 3 4 2 1

3,The three IV's were the gender of the model, the gender of the child and the level of aggression of the model.

Which of the following best describes the study done on the island of St Helena? A true experiment A quasi-experiment A natural experiment A field experiment

A natural experiment

describe what bandura meant by attention

Attention: In order to learn a behaviour, the learner must pay attention to the model. There are certain factors that may influence whether attention is paid to the model, including the attractiveness of the model, the authority of the model, or the desirability of the behaviour.

Bandura Results

Bandura's group found that the children who had observed the aggressive models were significantly more aggressive—both physically and verbally. The children showed clear signs of observational learning. With regard to the second aim, Bandura observed that girls were more likely to imitate verbal aggression, whereas boys were more likely to imitate physical aggression. When boys observed women bashing the Bobo doll, they often made comments like "Ladies shouldn't do that!" In other words, the children were more likely to imitate the same-sex adult.

Bandura participants

Children aged 3 to 6 years (36 boys and 36 girls) were divided into groups. The groups were matched with regard to aggression based on an evaluation by their parents and teachers

The children in Bandura's study may have acted more aggressive because they thought that the researcher wanted them to. This is an example of Researcher bias Expectancy effect Screw you effect Optimism bias

Expectancy effect

True or False SCLT relies on reward for behaviors to be learned?

False, we do not need positive reinforcement - that is, a reward - to continue the behaviou

Joy, Kimball and Zabrack 1986 findings

Findings: Children in Canada were found to have become significantly more aggressive two years after television was introduced to their town.

limitations of bandura

First, the experiment has been criticized for low ecological validity. Not only was it carried out in a laboratory, but there are also other factors that make the situation less than natural. There is only a very brief encounter with the model, and the children are intentionally frustrated after they begin to play with a toy. This situation does little to predict what happens if a child is repeatedly exposed to aggressive parents or violence on television. One also has to question the actual aggression that was observed. Does the aggression against a Bobo doll indicate learned aggression in general, or it is highly specific to this situation?

Bandura 2 aims

First, the researchers wanted to see if children would imitate aggression modelled by an adult; and second, they wanted to know if children were more likely to imitate same-sex models.

What is an explanation for why the children in Bandura's 1961 study did not imitate the behaviour of the female model when she was bashing the Bobo? She reminded them of their mothers. The women only engaged in verbal aggression and most of the children were too young to understand. The children were afraid of her. Her behaviour was not seen as consistent with women's behavior

Her behaviour was not seen as consistent with women's behavior

The researchers that watched the children in Bandura's study had similar scores on the aggression of the children. What does this mean about the study? It is accurate. It has ecological validity. It has predictive validity. It has inter-rater reliabilty.

It has inter-rater reliabilty, As the scores for aggression were similar for the different researchers, we say that the study has high inter-rater reliability. This is an example of researcher triangulation - by seeing that different researchers came up with the same measurement of the DV, it strengthens the findings. In psychology, we don't often use the word "accurate." Accuracy means how well we have actually measured something. So, if you weigh yourself, how accurate is your scale - does it give you your exact weight, or is it "off." This is a term you should not use in the discussion of most research in psychology.

why is the motivation component of bandura's SCLT difficult to catagorize? what three components affect motivation levels

Motivation to imitate the behaviour of the model is quite complex. There are several factors that may influence whether or not the observer decides to imitate and learn. Consistency: If the model behaves in a way that is consistent across situations—for example, always being brave—then the observer will be more likely to imitate the model than if the model behaves in different ways depending on the situation. Identification with the model: There is a tendency to imitate models who are like us — for example, in terms of age and gender. liking the model: Warm and friendly models are more likely to be imitated than cold, uncaring models.

describe what bandura meant by motivation

Motivation: Learners must want to replicate the behaviour that they have observed. In order to do this, they must understand what the potential outcome is if they repeat the behaviour - what Bandura called outcome expectancies.

bandura conditions

One group was exposed to adult models who showed aggression by either bashing an inflatable "Bobo" doll or using verbal aggression toward the Bobo; a second group observed a non-aggressive adult who assembled toys for 10 minutes, and a third group served as a control and did not see any model. In the first and second groups, some children watched same-sex models and some watched opposite-sex models. After watching the models, the children were placed in a room with toys. Very soon, they were taken out of the room, being told that those toys were for other children, and then they were put into the room with the Bobo doll. This was done so that all of the children experienced some level of frustration that may lead to them showing aggression. The children were observed behind a one-way mirror and their behaviours were recorded.

describe what bandura meant by potential

Potential: In order to reproduce an observed behaviour, observers must physically and/or mentally be able to carry out the behaviour - that is, there needs to be a certain level of self-efficacy.

describe what bandura meant by retention

Retention: The observer must be able to remember the behaviour that has been observed in order to produce that behaviour immediately or after some time.

Finally, social cognitive learning theory argues that learning is most likely to occur if the observer has high ___ __. ___ ___ is one's belief in one's ability to succeed accomplishing a task. Bandura and other researchers have found Individuals with high ____ ___ are more likely to believe they can master challenging problems and they can recover quickly from setbacks and disappointments.

Self-efficacy

_____ _____ ____ ___ - formerly known as ___ _____ ___- assumes that humans learn behaviour through observational learning—in other words, people can learn by watching models and imitating their behaviour. Sometimes the model is trying to have a direct effect

Social Cognitive Learning Theory, Social Learning Theory

Evaluation of social cognitive learning theory

Social cognitive learning theory helps explain why behaviours may be passed down in a family or within a culture. It also explains why children can acquire some behaviours without trial-and-error learning. However, although a behaviour may be acquired, it is not always demonstrated. The child might learn something from watching a model but may not exhibit that behaviour for some time. Because this gap exists between when one observes the model and when one may demonstrate the behaviour, it is difficult to establish 100 per cent that the behaviour is the result of observing the model. Neither does social learning theory explain why some people never learn a behaviour, in spite of the above criteria being met. In spite of much of the research being experimental and rather artificial in nature, the theory itself has been applied in many different ways - including health promotion programs and therapy for anxiety disorders.

Which of the following is not a factor in social cognitive learning theory? Paying attention to a model. Being able to remember the actions of the model. The model must be a member of the learner's in-group. Having a motivation to replicate the behaviour.

The model must be a member of the learner's in-group

According to Bandura, which of the following is not true about Social Cognitive Learning? We are more likely to imitate a model if he does something that leads to a lucky outcome - like winning a prize. We are more likely to imitate a model if we believe in our ability to succeed. We are more likely to imitate a model if she is in our in-group. We are more likely to imitate a model if we like him.

We are more likely to imitate a model if he does something that leads to a lucky outcome - like winning a prize.

Studies like Huesmann and Eron's have the problem of bidirectional ambiguity. This means that ... The indepenent variable was not fully operationalized. We don't know if the television viewing led to aggression or whether aggressive children spend more time watching television. The results cannot be replicated. There were too many variables that could not be controlled.

We don't know if the television viewing led to aggression or whether aggressive children spend more time watching television.

What is meant by vicarious reinforcement? When we are exposed to something over time and learn through repetition. When we get negative feednack and therefore stop a behaviour. When we get positive feedback and therefore continue a behaviour. When we see someone else get positive feedback and therefore imitate the behaviour.

When we see someone else get positive feedback and therefore imitate the behaviour. Vicarious reinforcement means that we don't have to personally experience a reward or a punishment for a behaviour; we can watch another person experience it and then learn though the process of observation.

According to Bandura, social cognitive learning involves the following cognitive factors. list all four in order

attention, retention, motivation, potential

Joy, Kimball and Zabrack 1986 what kind of study is this

longitudinal, natural experiment

Joy, Kimball and Zabrack 1986 what was the researcher role in this experiment

the psychologists observed physical and verbal aggression along with conducting a survey for peer rating system where peers rated aggressive behaviors, observational measured aggression levels in the children

Joy, Kimball and Zabrack 1986 aim

to study the impact of television on children's aggressive behavior by carrying out a longitudinal natural experiment