Bandura

Question 1

What is operant conditioning?

Answer 1

• learning is a result of reinforcement and punishment
• focuses on changes in a person’s voluntary behaviour, not just in response to stimuli
• Thorndike: pleasant consequences lead to behaviour being repeated, unpleasant lead to being less likely repeated
• Skinner: box showed the rat could be trained to push a lever, measured effect of reinforcement and punishment

Question 2

What did they believe was the issue with behaviourism?

Answer 2

• too simplistic
• instead believed in reciprocal determinism (persons behaviour both influences and is influenced by personal factors and the social environment)

Question 3

What were the main hypotheses?

Answer 3

• children who observe aggressive adult models will imitate aggression
• imitation of aggression will occur even if model is absent
• imitation of aggression will occur in the lack of reward

Question 4

What was the research question?

Answer 4

-can children learn aggressive behaviour through imitation and if so, does gender matter?

Question 5

Who were the participants?

Answer 5

• 36 boys, 36 girls
• aged 37-69 months
• 24 children in control
• 6 children in each of the 8 experimental groups

Question 6

What were the experimental conditions?

Answer 6

• 24 children with aggressive role model (12 male, 12 female)
• 24 children with not aggressive role model (12 male, 12 female)

Question 7

Who were the role models?

Answer 7

• aggressive condition: model hit the bobo-doll with mallet and gave aggressive verbal responses
• non-aggressive condition: model played with bobo-doll and gave aggressive behaviour

Question 8

What was the procedure?

Answer 8

• mild aggression arousal: children put in room with toys and told not to play with them
• aggression arousal: children put in room with bobo-doll with experimenters observing aggressive behaviour

Question 9

What were the general findings?

Answer 9

• aggressive model led to aggressive child, friendly model led to friendly child
• children imitate same-sex model more than opposite sex, irrespective of interaction

Question 10

What were the gender findings?

Answer 10

• boys more aggressive when there’s a male model
• girls more aggressive when model was female
• boys imitate more physical aggression
• no difference in verbal aggression

Question 11

What conclusions were drawn?

Answer 11

• behaviour is learnt through modelling, modelling leads to learning
• reinforcement leads to performance of behaviour

Question 12

What are the scientific issues?

Answer 12

-low ecological validity
-sample bias (all US and high SES)
-operationalisation 1 (question extent that children acting in aggressive manner compared to them playing)
operationalisation 2 (whether model matters, whether it’s live/symbolic)
-operationalisation 3 (factors affecting reproduction of behaviour)
-only looks at behaviour as form of imitation, doesn’t consider role of genes

Question 13

What are the ethical issues?

Answer 13

• mild aggression arousal (upsetting/angering on purpose)

- teaching aggression (potential long term effects)

Question 14

What were the theoretical contributions?

Answer 14

• expanded understanding of development of behaviour
• instigated important research
• used extensively today

Question 15

How does social learning theory relate to the media?

Answer 15

• Bushman (2012): media violence was an active involvement, identification, direct reward for violent behaviour
• Anderson et al (2010): reviewed studies on effect of video games, there was increase in aggressive behaviour and decrease in altruism and empathy. findings were challenged by Ferguson and Kilburn
• Kuhn et al (2018) conducted longitudinal study and found no significant effects

Question 16

What are the applied contributions?

Answer 16

• generated important practices (modelling therapy)

- developmental models of aggression (Patterson, Moffit’s)