learning approaches social learning theory

c. Social learning theory was proposed by Bandura (1972) as a more nuanced explanation of behaviourism.

True. Social learning theory takes the nurture side of the nature-nurture debate. Learning takes place in social contexts i.e. learning is not innate but is absorbed via the child's environment such as the home, school, peer groups etc.

A key assumption of social learning theory is that a child observes the behaviour of a role model and imitates that behaviour in other contexts.

False. Vicarious reinforcement takes place when a child observes another person experience positive direct reinforcement as a consequence of a specific behaviour.

True. Vicarious reinforcement highlights the more sophisticated nature of social learning theory compared to behaviourism, as it involves a degree of cognition. People are required to process what they have seen and imagine themselves gaining a similar reward for the specific behaviour.

c. Attention-Retention-Reproduction-Motivation is the sequence of the mediational processes known as ARRM.

In mediational processes attention and retention refer to the learning of the behaviour; reproduction and motivation refer to the performance of that behaviour.

a. and d. Social learning theory provides a more 'rounded' explanation than that offered by behaviourism, as it is less reductionist and deterministic than behaviourism. This is because mediational processes imply that the individual has some choice over their behaviour.

True. Social learning theory has good application to the use of token economies in prisons or health settings. The prisoner/patient observes others being rewarded for 'good' behaviour with tokens.

b. Social learning theory cannot ** account for behaviours which are observed frequently and are not imitated E.g., a child who frequently observes domestic violence may never be violent towards anyone else. This means that social learning theory can offer only a limited explanation of behaviour, as it does not acknowledge the role of individual differences **as a factor in learning.

Bandura (1961) set up the Bobo Doll study to investigate social learning theory in terms of whether children would imitate an aggressive role model.

c. To investigate the effect of opposite-sex modelling on children's aggressive behaviour was not an aim of Bandura's research.

Bandura asked the nursery staff to rate each child's aggression prior to the research.

a. Bandura used the nursery staff's ratings** to devise a matched pairs design. This was done so that each condition of the independent variable would have an equal balance **of aggressive children.

a. Aggressive child is not one of the three conditions of the independent variable in Bandura's research.

Two findings from Bandura's research are that boys are more physically aggressive and girls are more verbally aggressive.

False. One of Bandura's conclusions is that imitation of aggression can occur after only a single exposure to the aggressive act.

True. Bandura's research has good external validity. The study fuelled much debate as to children's exposure to the depiction of violence on television, i.e., it can be applied to settings and behaviours beyond the experiment itself.

c. A limitation of Bandura's research is that children do not learn aggression in lab conditions. Rreal-life aggression is generally observed in familiar settings involving familiar adults. This makes Bandura's study less ecologically valid than research conducted in the field.