Social Learning Theory: Carried Out With The BOBO Doll

Albert Bandura created the bobo doll experiment in 1961, the aim of this experiment was to show that if children where witnesses to aggressive displays by an adult of some sort they would imitate this behaviour when given an opportunity. The tested group contained 36 young girls and 36 young boys all aged between 4 and 5 years which was then divided into 3 groups of 24 – the aggressive condition, the non aggressive condition and the control group. The first group involved the children watching aggressive models, where the children where then subdivided by sex of the role model they were exposed to. The second group

“Social learning theories focus on the effects of thought on action and action on thought” (Slavin, 2014). Social learning theories incorporates four observational phases, which are attentional phase, retention phase, reproduction and motivational phase. These four stages make up

Behaviorists argue that people are not born with a violent disposition; rather they learn to think and act violently as a result of their everyday experiences (Bandura, 1977). Albert Bandura (1977) states behavior is learned from the environment through the process of observational learning. This popular behavioral notion is known as the social learning theory. Bandura believes that humans are active information processors and think about the relationship between their behavior and its consequences. Studies of family life, for example, show that aggressive children often model the violent behaviors of their parents. In 1961, Bandura conducted the famous bobo doll experiment in which children observed the people around them behaving in various ways. The experiment involved exposing children to two different adult models; an aggressive model and a non-aggressive one. After observing the adults and their aggressive or non-aggressive behavior, the children were later allowed to play in a room with the Bobo doll by themselves. When they played with the doll by themselves, alone in a room, they began to imitate the actions they had previously observed by the adults. The children who had observed the adults aggressively playing with the doll imitated a similar aggressive behavior while playing with the doll alone. Those who observed the

Bandura suggested children learn from watching adults – referred to as ‘Bobo doll experiment’. Three groups of children watched a film of a variation in behaviour in adults towards a doll.

Social learning theory suggests that people learn from one another, this can be through observation, imitation, media and modelling. This theory is often known as the behaviourist theory and cognitive learning theory because it consists of using attention, memory, behaviour and motivation. “Social learning theory advocates that individuals, especially children, imitate or copy modelled behaviour from personally observing others, the environment and the mass media”. (Gray and MacBlain, 2015). This is stating that a child will look up to someone they respect and class them as models, the child may imitate their behaviour and the way they act. If a child’s behaviour is then reinforced the behaviour will occur again. This theory consists of

Albert Bandura (1977), the originator of social learning theory, focused his research on the process of how people learn through observation. Social Learning stems from a cognitive and behavioral theory model. This is demonstrated through the well-known Bobo Doll experiment. The experiment entailed a child observing an adult being aggressive towards the Bobo Doll (Pavlov et al., 1961). The results indicated that children imitated the observed behaviors of being aggressive towards the doll (Pavlov et al., 1961).

Psychologist Albert Bandura (1961) conducted an experiment studying children’s behaviour through Social Learning Theory, observational learning or modelling; He did this using a ‘BoBo doll’. The children were taken into a room with either an adult male or adult female role model and shown the bobo doll. The role model would then show aggression to the doll by punching it or knocking it down. Then the children were allowed to play with the doll.

During the class presentation by Dr. Felver on Septmeber 7th, the Social Learning Theory was discussed. Bandura’s social learning theory, states that people learn from one another via observation, imitation and modeling.

In 1961 Albert Bandura and two of his colleagues set out to find empirical evidence to support his Social Learning Theory, which is the "theory that we learn social behavior by observing and imitating and by being rewarded and punished.” (Myers 162) The “Transmission of Aggression Through Imitation of Aggressive Models,” is more famously known as the Bobo doll study. The Bobo doll study tested children's susceptibility to aggressive tendencies by exposing them to adult models who exhibited aggressive behaviors and observing how the child expressed frustration later on away from the adult model.

As we know today, that Akers Social Learning Theory (SLT) is one of the central theories within criminology that helps us understand and explain what causes criminal and deviant behavior, as well as the “changes of understanding how they might be embraces socially, nonsocial, and cultural factors operating both to motivate and control criminal behavior and both to promote and undermine conformity” (“Empirical Status of”, n.d.). So, are there any types of limitation for Social Leaning Theory? This is what we will be discussing in this report.

The behavior of humans is developed as they grow up and are surrounded by a variety of people. For example, in Lord of the flies, the littluns imitate the older boys. They believe that since that boy is doing that, then it should be okay to do the same. In the Bobo Doll Experiment, this is exactly what happens. This experiment was to see how aggressive the children were with the bobo doll after they have seen what their model does to it. The children from this experiment are split into three groups and two groups are given a model. The models are either aggressive or passive with the bobo doll used in the experiment. The influence on the children is shown by the conclusion, “-That is, children learn social behavior such as aggression through the process of observation learning- through watching of another person” (Mcleod). As said by Mcleod, children learn social behavior, by watching others.

An example of observational learning would be Bandura’s bobo dolls experiment in the 1960s (Bandura, Albert, Dorothea Ross, and Sheila A. Ross (1963)). Bandura created a video that he played to a group of small children who either saw an aggressive or non-aggressive video. One group of children were shown a model showing aggressive behaviour such as hitting, kicking and screaming towards the bobo doll. A second group of children were shown a non-aggressive video of the model. After playing the videos, the young children were sent into a playroom to play with these dolls. The overall conclusion of the experiment exhibited that the group that watched the aggressive video showed more aggressive acts towards the dolls than the group of children that seen the non-aggressive video. This theory provides a useful set of concepts that provides us with a more complex insight of how individuals can be guided down a path of anti-social behaviour through social interactions or observations. The theory surmises that a person’s genetic and biological endowment engenders a potential for aggression, while the specifics of truculent demeanour, its forms and frequency, the situations that evoke it and the targets towards which it is directed are acquired through

According to Sigelman, Rider & De George-Walker (2016) “observational learning results from observing the behaviour of people”. Where as social learning theory develops due to social behaviour learnt through cognitive processing that is gained from observation.

I agree with the social learning theory because I find that it holds some truth to it. “we may

According to bandura (1963) “It states that learning is a cognitive process that takes place in a social context and can occur purely through observation or direct instruction, even in the absence of motor reproduction or direct reinforcement.” Bandura (1971) explained “Social learning theory as a theory of learning and social behavior which proposes that new behaviors can be acquired by observing and imitating others.” Renzetti et. al, (2012) say that “In addition to the observation of behavior, learning also occurs through the observation of rewards and punishments, a process known as vicarious reinforcement. When a particular behavior is rewarded regularly, it will most likely persist; conversely, if a particular behavior is constantly punished, it will most likely desist.” According to Muro & Jeffrey (2008) “Social learning theory is increasingly cited as an essential component of sustainable natural resource management and the promotion of desirable behavioural change.” (Bandura, 1977) “People learn through observing others’ behavior, attitudes, and outcomes of those