Criminology Flashcards
(24 cards)
What is operant conditioning
a method of learning where the consequences of a response, determines the probability of it being repeated
behaviour which is reinforced(rewarded) will likely be repeated, and behaviour which is punished is likely to occur less frequently
what is a positive reinforcement
is the addition of a reward following a desired behaviour
what is a negative reinforcement
is the removal of something negative following a desired behaviour
what is a primary reinforcer
is one which is necessary for survival
what is a secondary reinforcer
those which provide the means to obtain a primary reinforcer
what is a positive punishment
is the addition of something unpleasant after a behaviour, so we are less likely to do it again
what is a negative punishment
is the removal of something pleasant after a behaviour, so we are less likely to do it again
social learning theory
Albert Bandura emphasizes the importance of observing, modelling, and imitating the behaviors, attitudes, and emotional reactions of others
Agrees with classical conditioningandoperant conditioning. However, he adds two important ideas:
Mediating processes (thought process following observations)
Behavior is learned from the environment through the process of observational learning
what is modelling
when can modelling take place?
social learning theory believes that we learn behaviours by imitating a role model
where someone identifies with another person(a role model) in some way
what is observational learning
learning new behaviour through watching and modelling a role model
stages of observational learning
- pay attention to the role model
-Important details about the observed behaviour will need to be stored in long-term memory, such as visually (images) or semantically (meaning) - Reproduction of the behaviour provided the consequences of that behaviour are sufficiently reinforced
-Motivation to repeat a behaviour depends on the reinforcements or punishment that follows. If a person observes a role model receiving a reward for a behaviour this may also act as a motivator - vicarious reinforcement
-Identification occurs when the behaviour, beliefs and values of the role model is adopted
Bandura (1961) Aims
was to see if children will imitate aggressive and non-aggressive role model behaviour, even if they are not rewarded for it
To see if the children would be more likely to copy same-sex role models than opposite-sex role models
To see if boys would be more aggressive than girls, particularly if exposed to the aggressive male role model condition
Bandura procedure
72 children (36 were boys and 36 were girls)
Children were aged between 37 and 69 months old and all from Stanford University nursery school
Two adults (one male and one female) acted as the role models
The researchers pre-tested the children for how aggressive they were by observing the children in the nursery and judged their aggressive behavior on four 5-point rating scales
It was then possible to match the children in each group so that they had similar levels of aggression in their everyday behavior
Bandura stage 1 - modelling
24 children (12 boys and 12 girls) watched a male or female model behaving aggressively towards a toy called a ‘Bobo doll’. The adults attacked the Bobo doll
Another 24 children (12 boys and 12 girls) were exposed to a non-aggressive model who played in a quiet and subdued manner for 10 minutes (playing with a tinker toy set and ignoring the bobo-doll)
The final 24 children (12 boys and 12 girls) were used as a control group and not exposed to any model at all
Bandura stage 2 - aggression arousal
The participant was subjected to mild aggression arousal
The participant was taken to a room with new and interesting toys
As soon as the child started to play with the toys, the experimenter told the child that these were the experimenter’s very best toys and she had decided to reserve them for the other children
Bandura stage 3 - test for imitation
The child was taken to another room containing some aggressive toys and some non-aggressive toys.
The child was in the room for 20 minutes, and their behavior was observed and rated though a one-way mirror. Observations were made at 5-second intervals, therefore, giving 240 response units for each child
Other behaviors that didn’t imitate that of the model were also recorded e.g., punching the Bobo doll on the nose.
Bandura results
Participants in the aggressive groups reproduced more physical and verbal aggressive behaviour than those in the non-aggressive groups
Boys imitated more physical aggression than girls. There was no significant difference in the imitation of verbal aggression between the sexes
Boys imitated more physical and verbal aggression after being exposed to the male aggressive role model than to the female aggressive role model
Participants in the non-aggressive conditions engaged in significantly more nonaggressive play activities or sat quietly.
Bandura conclusion
Bobo doll experiment demonstrates that children are able to learn social behavior such as aggression through the process of observation learning, through watching the behavior of another person
This learning occurred without reinforcements being given
The findings supportBandura’s Social Learning Theory
This study has important implications for the effects of media violence on children.
Strengths of bandura
Carlton et al (2000) Aims
to examine the impact of television on the social behaviour of young children
Carlton et al procedure
A random sample of the school population of children aged between 3 – 8 years old were observed (from 2 different primary schools)
Prior to the introduction of television to the island, the free-play behaviour of children was video recorded during the morning, lunch and afternoon play over a two week period
This was repeated in 2000, after the introduction of television
The data gathered from videos recordings were coded using eight items for pro-social and anti-social behaviours (taken from the Playground Behaviours Observation Scale – PBOS)
Videos were coded by independent, trained coders, who compared and discussed their coding for every 60-second internal of the video recording
A tally was then made as to how many of the acts were displayed by children in 60 second intervals
Data was organised by whether;
A single boy / girl displayed the behaviour
Pair of girl / boy
Group of more than three girls/boys or mixed group
Carlton et al results
2 decreases in anti-social behaviour
5 decreases in pro-social behaviour
2 increases in pro-social behaviour
Boys displayed more anti-social behaviour
Pro-social behaviour was detected twice as much as anti-social behaviour
Carlton et al conclusion
Findings failed to support other studies’ claims of adverse viewing effects of television
Following the introduction of television little change in pro- or anti-social behaviour had occurred
This may be explained by environmental factors such as the close-knit community of the island
However, they did conclude that boys are more anti-social in their play, but this does not appear to relate to television
Weaknesses of carlton et al
ethics - the children not aware they were observed and did not take part in the design of the study
unique community - so findings may not be generalisable to other settings
difference in programs broadcast on the island - ie turtles(external validity)
