Social Learning Theory Essay: Introduction
Bandura’s social learning theory argues that gaining knowledge that results in behavior change is attained through observation, imitation, and modeling. Besides, the theory postulates that the learning process is achieved through role imitations, attitudes, and anticipated outcomes (Bandura, 1977). In other words, individual learning abilities are enhanced through simulations, scrutiny, and role enhancements. Through observation, individuals can easily create a new behavior, which informs future actions. Generally, the theory explains human behavior concerning incessant interactive reciprocation between ecological, cognitive, and conductive influences. Bandura social learning theory has often been perceived as a conduit between cognitive and behaviorist theories. The reason is that it contains the attributes of both cognitive and behaviorist theories, including increased awareness, recollection, and impetus. The theoretical perspective of Bandura has been widely applied in various fields ranging from psychology to medicine, particularly in explaining children’s cognitive developments and changes in behavior patterns.
Bandura Social Learning Theory: Explanations
According to the theory, learning would be impossible if individuals were left to depend wholly on the impacts of their personal actions (Bandura, 1977). Essentially, the behaviors of an individual cannot be influenced fully by the result of their personal actions. However, individual behaviors are impacted through the process of modeling. In other words, from the observations, individuals can easily come up with an idea of how new behaviors are performed, which informs future actions (Bandura, 1977).
Bandura’s social learning theory is a highly recognized learning and development theory. The reason is that the theory is based on the traditional concepts of learning and development theories while holding the most divergent and provable ideas. In addition to the traditional concepts, Bandura added the social element where the idea of learning through observation is propagated. Bandura argued that gaining new knowledge of information and a resultant change in behaviors are attained through modeling. The modeling process is similar to observational learning, which can be applied to account for several behaviors in individuals (Bandura, 1977).
The Notions of Basic Social Learning
Three basic ideas form the core of Bandura’s social learning theory. First is the notion of observational learning. Essentially, the idea of observational learning argues that people can gain knowledge by imitating others. The second notion is that an individual’s cognitive or mental state is a critical part of the whole process. The final concept is the fact that not all things observed and learned result in behavioral transformation (Bandura, 1977).
Bandura Social Learning Theory: Observational Learning
From various experiments, Bandura showed that children tend to learn and imitate other people’s behaviors, particularly significant others. In most cases, children imitate the behaviors they have observed from their adult role models (Bandura, 1977). The observations of Bandura in most of his studies explain the role modeling process in behavior patterns where people tend to imitate the conduct of their significant others. In most behavioral theories, role models are typically termed significant others. The actions of role models majorly influence individuals’ behaviors. According to the social learning theory, new behaviors are learned through observations and imitating the actions of significant others (Bandura, 1977). Through observations, children can understand how new behaviors are performed. For instance, belligerent children have been found to imitate the aggressive actions of their parents. Essentially, such children tend to imitate the hostile actions of their parents, which they had observed in the past. However, learning through observation is not only attained through live models but also through verbal and symbolic models (Bandura, 1977).
Based on the notion, the theory acknowledged three basic learning process models ranging from live to symbolic models. Bandura argued that the live model entails activities that an individual really confirms. The verbal instructional model gives rationalizations and descriptions for a particular behavior (Bandura, 1977). In the symbolic model, the behaviors are portrayed through illusory characters. Symbolic modeling is quite common in the current media, including online, television, and social networking. Learning behaviors through symbolic modeling has become common in the current social system and is influenced by the advances in information technology and globalization.
Importance of Cognitive or Intrinsic Reinforcement
The theory postulates that gaining knowledge and individual actions are influenced by external environmental factors and cognitive corroboration. According to the theory, intrinsic reinforcement includes internal rewards such as pride, satisfaction, and a sense of accomplishment (Bandura, 1977). Learning will be enhanced when an individual has total internal satisfaction with the new behavior. In addition, adopting the new behavior is quick when it results in increased personal accomplishment. Personal accomplishment is also accompanied by pride and satisfaction. Essentially, intrinsic reinforcement, or the mental state of an individual, plays a critical role in the learning process of an individual (Bandura, 1977). In fact, the emphasis on internal rewards forms the connection between this social learning supposition and cognitive development theories. While most scholars categorize the conjecture under behavioral theories, the approach by Bandura leans towards social cognitive theories.
The Relationship between Learning and Change in Behavior
Most behavior theorists believe that learning enhances and transforms an individual behavior permanently. However, studies indicate that learning can occur without changes in behavior patterns. In other words, new information can be learned without transformations in individual behavior. Bandura’s social learning theory postulates that not all individual behaviors are learned. In fact, the theory argues that the social and intrinsic factors involved in the modeling process determine the success of learning the new behavior (Bandura, 1977). As such, the theory proposed specific steps that must be followed in order to succeed in behavioral changes through the learning process.
One of the steps is the attention. Bandura argues that the learning process is enhanced by increased attention. Actually, any detraction from attention may negatively affect observational learning (Bandura, 1977). Besides, attention is enhanced by intrinsic factors such as increased interest or the creation of new ideas. Another critical factor is retention. Retention is the ability to store the acquired information. While retention can be affected by many factors, the capability of retrieving the information later and put into practice is critical to the modeling process (Bandura, 1977).
Reproduction is the next step after retention. Reproduction is the retrieval of retained information, which is demonstrated by actual practice. The practice of retained information leads to behavior change through skill advancements (Bandura, 1977). The final step in the modeling process is motivation. Motivation can either be in the form of reinforcement or punishment. Either form of motivation is critical for the success of the modeling process.
Bandura Social Learning Theory: Applications
As indicated, the theory has been widely applied in various fields, from psychology to medicine. In particular, the theory is mainly used in the field of education, particularly in the explanation of the learning process of the pupils. Currently, the education stakeholders take into cognizance of the significance of the theory in establishing strategies that tend to focus on the changing behaviors of school-going children. In addition, the theory has been applied in explaining errant behaviors observed in most school children. Bandura’s social learning theory has also been used to develop education policies such as classroom strategies and help children build self-efficacy. In other fields, the theory has mainly been applied to explain children’s learning and development processes. Further, the theory has been applied in psychology and counseling to explain the behavior patterns of delinquent children. Most importantly, the theory is critical in understanding the current observational learning process through symbolic modeling, majorly influenced by the new media.
Bandura Social Learning Theory: Conclusion
Bandura’s social learning theory is one of the highly recognized theories in learning and development. While the theory borrows hugely from the traditional concepts of learning and development theories, it incorporates the social element in which the idea of learning through observation is propagated. The theory argues that the learning process is achieved through observation, imitation, and modeling. As mentioned, the theory is widely applied in the field of education, especially in the explanations of the learning process.
Reference
Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory. New York, NY: General Learning Press.