5.1 Social Learning Theory and Critiques
Learning Objectives
By the end of this chapter, you will be able to
- List the four aspects of observational learning according to social learning theory, and critique the limits of the theory.
- Distinguish between how prejudicial attitudes are classically conditioned and how discriminatory behaviors are operantly conditioned.
- Explain how “bad is stronger than good” impacts stereotype learning over time.
- Describe Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory of learning.
- Describe the importance of culture in play-based learning for children.
Social learning theory by Albert Bandura (Bandura, 1977) suggests that humans primarily learn by observing and imitating others in their environment. Observational learning requires four components: paying attention to the actions of others in order to observe, retention of the observed behaviors in memory, initiation of an attempt at the novel behavior by the learner, and motivation to engage in the learning process. Bandura famously conducted the “Bobo Doll Experiment,” during which children observed an adult interacting with a clown doll named Bobo. One group of children observed the adult interacting with Bobo in an aggressive manner, including punching and kicking the clown doll, whereas another group of children observed an adult interacting with Bobo in a neutral manner (no aggressive behaviors). The child participants who were in the aggressive observation group showed more aggressive behavior when they were allowed to play with Bobo on their own.
Video 5.1. “Bandura’s Bobo Doll Experiment“[New Tab] by Everywhere Psychology [New Tab].
Bandura’s conclusion that “observing aggression leads to aggressive behavior” has been used as a basis for judgments often levied against racialized parents and children living in neighborhoods with high community or neighborhood violence. This judgment is also often placed on families where children are exposed to aggression through media, such as television or video games. However, meta-analytic reviews have suggested we do not have sufficient evidence to make this causal statement. A review of over 100 studies involving children of a large age range found that playing video games, whether violent or nonviolent, had minimal negative influence on either aggressive or prosocial behaviors (Ferguson, 2015). Even in longitudinal intervention studies, during which participants are asked to consume violent or nonviolent media daily for months at a time, researchers do not find significant changes in prosocial or aggressive behaviors (Kuhn et al., 2018). Given that the data does not support causal directionality in the relationship between observing aggression and acting in an aggressive manner, it is important not to use Bandura’s statement as a judgment about parenting behaviors.
A type of learning that occurs when one watches others to consider their action and consequences, and copies their behavior, attitudes, or emotional expressions.