question

What does social learning theory suggest?

answer

That people learn behaviours by observing other people, particularly those they look up to (i.e their role models) as not all learning is reinforced or involves reflexes

question

According to social learning theory where does much of what is learnt come from?

answer

Watching others and copying them, including reinforcement that follows observed behaviours

question

What does social learning theory incorporate?

answer

Principles of operant conditioning

question

Unlike operant conditioning, what does social learning theory argue?

answer

That as much the environment (other people) affects individuals' behaviour so does the individual also affect the environment through their cognitive processing, which will determine is a behaviours are learned or not

question

What is the idea of learning?

answer

Being a two-way process, where a individual is interacting with the environment rather than simply being affected by it, is called reciprocal determinism

question

What does another important factor in social learning theory attempt to explain?

answer

Both observable behaviours and cognitive processes which take place during learning and display of different behaviours

question

Modelling

answer

The behaviour is modelled by another person (role model), someone of importance to the observer such as a parent, a friend or a celebrity personality

question

Observation

answer

The learner will observe role model and focus on the important aspects of their behaviour

question

Imitation

answer

The learner will later imitate the observed behaviour, although the repetition of the behaviour will depend on reinforcements received for displaying the behaviour

question

Vicarious reinforcement

answer

The learner does not need to receive direct reinforcement in order to replicate the imitated behaviour as vicarious reinforcement (seeing someone else receive rewards for their behaviour) could equally motivate or demotivate their future behaviour

question

Example of vicarious reinforcement

answer

A person may work hard because a colleague at work has been rewarded for their hard work (vicarious reinforcement) or a person may decide not to shop-lift because their friend has ended up in prison for shop-lifting (vicarious punishment)

question

Stage 1 of social learning- attention

answer

The learner needs to pay attention to the important parts of the behaviour being observed.

question

Factors affecting attention

answer

Factors affecting if someone pays attention to the behaviour of others can depend on how distinctive the behaviour is and how relevant it is for that individual

question

Stage 2 of social learning- retention

answer

The important details about the observed behaviour will need to be stored the learner's memory.

question

Factors affecting retention

answer

Factors that are likely to affect this stage of learning include the way in which information is encoded and stored in long-term memory such as visually (images) or semantically (meaning)

question

Stage 3 of social learning- reproduction

answer

Once the modelled behaviour is in memory, it will be reporduced providing the consequences of that behaviour are sufficiently reinforced

question

Stage 4 of social learning- motivation

answer

The likelihood of a person repeating the behaviour which they had observed will depend on their motivation, which is largely dependant on the reinforcements that would follow replication of behaviour rewards will motivate people to behave in certain way whilst punishment is likely to demotivate them from reproducing the observed behaviour

question

1. Strength

answer

Supports the nurture side of the nature-nurture debate because it suggests that behaviour is learned through observation and imitation of role models rather than being a result of a person's biology which makes it possible to influence people's behaviours through use of positive role models.

question

1. Strength example

answer

Bandura's study showed that children who observed the aggressive role model made far more imitative aggressive responses than those who were in the non-aggressive or control group

question

2. Strength

answer

Less reductionist than classical and operant conditioning theories because it considers both cognitive processes and observable behaviours when explaining how these are learned and displayed

question

2. Strength example

answer

The theory explains the observation learning process as taking place through attention, retention and motivation (cognitive processes) before a behaviour is reproduced (behavioural element).

question

2. Strength- why is it a strength?

answer

Because it explains individual differences in people's behaviour such as reasons why some people may be influenced by the media violence whilst others are not

question

1. Weakness

answer

Can also be considered reductionist as it only focused on the nurture side of the nature-nurture debate so it ignores biological factors such as genetic inheritence which can also affect our behaviour which means that it cannot explain all behaviours.

question

1. Weakness example

answer

For example, the social learning theory cannot explain reasons why some identical twins display same behaviours even though they had raised in different adoptive environments

question

2. Weakness

answer

May lack scientific credibility because the supporting evidence is base on research studies carried out in artificial environment ecological validity as they cannot tell us about how behaviours are learned in everyday life

question

2. Weakness example

answer

Bandura's study placed the children in a room with a stranger who would act aggressively towards the Bobo doll. This is something that wouldn't happen in everyday life as the children wouldn't usually be left alone with a stranger nor would they imitate said stranger as children usually replicate their own role models I.e people they know and therefore the study is not representative of everyday life

question

Conclusion

answer

SLT offers a more complex picture of learning than Classical and Operant Conditioning, but it does introduce a "chicken-and-egg" problem: do people imitate role models or do they seek out role models because they already have a predisposition to behave that way?

Psychology- social learning theory – Flashcards

Unlock all answers in this set

Haven't found what you were looking for?

Search for samples, answers to your questions and flashcards