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Example Of Observational Learning

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The topic that I chose for this week is observational learning. Observational learning is learning by others and imitating their behavior (Griggs, 2009, p. xx). Observational learning can help us when we want to learn how to play sports, drive a car, or even learn to write letters. There are numerous things we can acquire through observational learning. Many of us watched our mother and grandmother bake, or even just cook when we were younger. We picked up many of the things that they did, this is another example of observational learning.
We also learn attitudes and behaviors through observational learning. There are good models of behavior. Models such as how to act appropriately in certain situations. On the other hand, there are bad models. Those little negative traits, and habits we pick up from watching others. Often times we hear people say: He/she did not have proper home training. This comes from …show more content…

If you have ever made a face at an infant and watched them try to imitate it, this is the observational process at work. The same with a toddler who sees his parents folding laundry. Later the child will grab some clothes and pretend to be folding them. A young boy watches another boy on the playground get in trouble for hitting another child. He learns from observing this interaction that he should not hit others (Cherry, 2016).
There are several factors that influence observational learning. They are attention: The person must have their focus directed at the model. Retention: The observer must be able to code, and store patterns so the data can be retrieved. Motor reproduction: Kinesthetic and neuromuscular patterns are practiced with successive iterations until the model's behavior is approximated by the observer ("Albert Bandura & Observational Learning," 2016). Lastly reinforcement and incentives: These send the learner in the direction of wanting to pay attention, retain, and recall the action in

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