Social Learning Theory : Aggression, Children And A Bobo Doll

The fundamentals of the social learning theory significantly describe offenders and their criminal behavior which is learned based on observation and imitation. A researcher by the name of Albert Bandura along with coworkers tested the social learning theory with several experiments on children and their imitation of aggression based on what they saw and were exposed to. Bandura’s focus was to prove that human behavior such as aggression is learned through social imitations and copying the actions of others. Walters (1966) gives details about the Bobo doll experiment and explains its purpose related to learning a violent behavior based on observation. In the experiment, the tested subjects were children of both sexes, ranging from the ages of three to six years. Some of the children were exposed to a non-aggressive adult, while the other children were placed in a room with an aggressive adult who would both physically and verbally attack the Bobo doll. The control group in the experiment was not exposed to any adult. During the second phase of the experiment, the children were left in a room by themselves with the toys, and watched to see if they would demonstrate the aggressive behavior like that of which they observed adults doing earlier. Walter (1966) describes the results as “children who had been exposed to an aggressive model showed more imitative physical and verbal

The Bandura Study A) The Bandura study aimed to see if children copying aggression that they see in adults. In the study a male or female model was aggressive toward a bobo doll, the children were then observed to see if they imitated any behaviour shown by the model, or if they were/weren’t aggressive. There were also 2 control groups, one of which had seen a non aggressive male/female model and another group was observed after seeing no model.

Consequently, children imitate the aggressive behaviour of the actor, and mimic it in the presence of other children. Comparatively, Hayne et. al (2003) states that 4 to15 month old imitate limited actions demonstrated by videotaped models. Hence, the focus of this task is on the difference and similarities between the studies of Bandura et al. (1963) & Hayne et al. (2003).

Human behaviors are learned emotion through interaction with each other. A child’s brain is like a sponge. It absorbs the behavior of its surroundings. Serial killer’s treatment and view of other people is a learned behavior through interaction with others in society. The Bobo doll experiment conducted by Albert Bandura in 1961-1963 at Stanford University shows how children’s behavior depends on adults that are around them. In the experiment, adults acted aggressively to the Bobo doll and the study was on how the children will react to it after they saw the adults’ interaction with the doll. Bandura conducted the experiment on two models where one of the models contained children exposed to the aggressive act performed by the adult on the Bobo doll. The other model contained children who saw adults act in a pleasant way to the doll. The result of this experiment showed that children exposed to the aggressive model were more likely to act physically aggressive than those who were not (McLeod). This study proved the social learning theory which basically states that children learn behaviors from

Children need guidance and personal example from the adults around them to help them learn what is acceptable and what behaviour isn’t acceptable. Behaviour is greatly influenced by primary socialisation and children will react and take in how close family members act. Bandura developed the modelling idea where children would copy the adults around them. “There is much evidence that a child who witnesses or experiences violence at home may develop aggressive tendencies.” There are a number of different types of behaviour these include assertive, aggressive, submissive and manipulative behaviour.

The study consisted of 36 boys and 36 girls from the Stanford University Nursery School, ages between 3 to 6 years old. The children were split into three groups based off their aggression judgment from teachers and parents. The first set of children were shown aggression by adults, both male and female, beating up a Bobo Doll. The second set of children ascertained an adult model who exhibit no aggression and the control group was not acquaint to any model. The first set of children were placed in a room with the Bobo Doll after 10 minutes of watching the adult model. The results showed that the first set of children who watched the aggressive model showed

Aggression is verbal or physical behavior intended to cause harm. Although we may not like to admit it, we all participate in aggressive behavior at some level and at some time in our lives. Do evolutionary factors play a large role in aggression? What was Freud 's theory about violence? What does more recent research say about a likely evolutionary role for violence? What does Hawley 's research say about this?

The Bobo doll experiment was the collective name of experiment conducted by Albert Bandura in 1961 and 1963 when children’s behaviors after watching a violence video. This experiment done in children. Albert Bandura made a video of children who used to more violence video. Instated out of 100% of people, 60% boys are more aggressive comparison to girls, because boys play more aggressive and dramatic games than a girl. According to the research, Albert found that both girls and boys who watched the older people, “how they play and beat the doll”. In our country we believe that, we learn from our siblings, if brother and sister are nice and good than small child also good. Children learn what they saw and lots of kids spend more quality time

A reduction in fear by observing a model’s behavior goes unpunished in a feared activity. I am often asked what I found overall in the bobo doll studies. Here is the answer. I observed that the group who saw the model punished for aggressiveness was least aggressive. The group who saw the model reinforced for aggressiveness was most aggressive. These groups were responding to vicarious reinforcement and vicarious punishment.

There have been many experiments to show how children can model violence after what they have been shown. One of the most famous models involves “Bobo the doll”. A group of twenty four children were involved in this experiment, some were shown aggressive behavior, some nonaggressive behavior, and some were shown no model. The children who were involved in seeing the aggressive model were more likely to repeat the aggressive behavior they were shown. Most involved hitting or shooting the doll, many threw the doll and repeated punches. This model shows that children are likely to repeat the aggressive behavior that is shown and modeled to them.

They hypothesized when children are presented with either aggressive or nonaggressive behaviors from their models, the children will readily imitate the behaviors. The test subjects in this case were pre-school aged children from the Stanford University Nursery; 36 males and 36 females aged from 37 months to 69 months, the mean age being 52 months. In this study, the independent variable was either an aggressive or a nonaggressive model. The aggressive models would spend their first minute quietly playing with the toys in the room and would spend the rest of the time using a sequence of aggression they repeated three times: laid Bobo on its side, sat on it and punched it in the nose, raised it, struck it on the head with a mallet, tossed it aggressively and kicked it around the room. The children in the control group were given no adult model. The dependent variable was the imitative physical aggression displayed by the children; three judges recorded the children’s behavior every five seconds for 20 minutes, whether the child had struck the Bobo doll with the mallet, sat on it and punched it in the nose, kicked it, or tossed it in the air. The children who observed the aggressive model had higher levels of imitative physical aggression (M = 12.725, p < .001) than the children who observed the nonaggressive model (M = 1.05) and the control (M = 1.6) groups. It is important to note this is experimental research. This is when the scientist uses a systematic and scientific approach to the scientific method where variables are manipulated. In this study a behavioral perspective was taken as how the behaviors of the children were affected by certain role models. Bandura, Ross, and Ross concluded at the end of this study the observation of cues produced by the behavior of others is effective in eliciting a certain response.

Social learning theory, in its simplest form, can be described as learning through observation. We learn through watching the interaction between others: How Mom responds to Dad, other women, her parents, etc. Observing social interaction teaches us the ‘correct’ behavior for our culture, our society. Social Learning Theory, as outlined in our textbook, holds that children imitate their parents’ social behavior. If a child is exposed to violence in the home, they are much more likely to repeat the observed behavior in their own relationships. (Intimate Relationships, Marriages & Families.) Albert Bandura believed that aggression was a socially learned behavior. He stated that children learn aggressive behaviors by watching those violent behaviors in family, friends, neighbors, and the media (TV, video games, etc.) He said that,” Those who figure prominently in children's lives serve as indispensable sources of

Many studies have been done on aggression in children. These studies can be done in the form of observations and experiments. Both types do start out with a research question and will try to look for certain links in aggression in children but they are done in different ways that result in different strengths and weaknesses that arise from each study. In this essay, I will be assessing the difference between the studies.

Other related theories, such as the Social Learning theory (Bandura, 1977), states that people gain aggressive behaviour by either direct experience or by observation. The Script theory by Huesmann (1994) is similar to the Social Learning theory, however it assumes that children learn aggressive ‘scripts’ or behaviour by observing violence in the mass media and video games. Scripts are unconsciously learned and re-enacted in similar situations (Huesmann, 1994).

Albert bandura played a significant role in the development of the social learning theory. The Social learning theory is a form of child development, which express that children learn by observing other individual behaviors. Transmission of aggression through imitation of aggressive models that is that have been previous studies have expressed significant evidence that children imamate behavior exhibited by an adult. This study differs from other studies by introducing subjects into a new setting and removing the behavioral model.