Social Cognitive Theory

Albert Bandura
 Early Life of Albert
Bandura
Born on December 4,
1925 in a small town
called Mundare in
northern Alberta,
Canada (50 miles east
of Edmonton).
He was the youngest
and only boy of six
children.
 Early Life of Albert
Bandura
Both of his parents were of Eastern European
descent, and his father and mother emigrated to
Canada when they were adolescents.
Albert Banduras father was from Krakow, Poland
and had no formal education, but he placed a high
value on attaining an education. He taught himself
three languages, including Polish, Russian, and
German.
Albert Banduras mother was from the Ukraine.
She did not have any formal education
 Early Education-
Elementary School
Bandura was educated
from elementary school
through high school in the
one and only school house
in town.
The school had a shortage
of supplies and teachers,
and most of the learning
was left to the students
initiative
Early Education-High
School
Banduras entire high school
math curriculum came from
one textbook. As a prank, the
students in the class stole the
textbook, and the teacher
had to plead and bargain with
the students on homework
assignments in order to get it
back.
The entire class that
graduated with Bandura
ended up going onto
universities around the world.
 Decision to Major in
Psychology
Bandura attended the University of British
Columbia in Vancouver for his undergraduate
degree.
He had intentions of majoring in one of the
biological sciences, but instead, he decided to
major in psychology due to reasons of chance.
He commuted to the university every day with
engineering and pre-med students who had to
arrive to campus early.
 Decision to Major in
Psychology
There was an introductory
course in psychology that
was offered at an early
time on the campus and
would fulfill the
requirement, so he
enrolled in it.
Bandura graduated in 1949
from the University of
British Columbia. It took
him three years to
graduate.
 University Education
1949:
Bandura received his B.A. degree from the
University of British Columbia (Isom, 1998)
1951:
M.A. received from the University of Iowa
(Albert Bandura, n.d., Minot State University)
1952:
Ph.D. received from University of Iowa
under the direction of Arthur Benton (who was
heavily influenced by William James). (Isom,
1998)
 Educational Interests
While studying at Iowa, Banduras
interest in childhood aggression
began
Idea of social learning theory
established while pursuing Ph.D. at
University of Iowa
 Honors, Awards, and
Achievements
Bandura has received several honorary degrees
from universities all over the world. (Moore, n.d.)
1972:
Recipient of a distinguished achievement award from the
American Psychological Association
Recipient of a Scientist Award from the California State
Psychological Association
1973:
Bandura was elected the president of the
American Psychological Association
 1977:
Bandura became known as the Father of the Cognitive
Theory.
1980:
Elected the president of the Western Psychological
Association.
1988:
Thorndike Award for Distinguished Contributions of
Psychology to Education from the American Psychological
Association.
2006:
Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in the Science of
Psychology from the American Psychological Association.
 Employment
1953:
Position accepted at the University of
Stanford
1964- Present:
Full professor position given to Bandura at
Stanford
1989:
Employed at the Institute of Medicine of
the National Academy of Sciences
 Social Cognitive Theory
Bandura does not consider himself a Social
Learning Theorist, but prefers Social Cognitive
Theory
Comprehensive theory that includes motivational
and self regulatory mechanisms
Emphasizes the social origins of human thought
process and behavior
Emphasizes cognitive influence on behavior,
rather than conditioning influences from the
environment
An Agentic Perspective
Emerges in Banduras sociocognitive
view of personality.
He viewed people as agents or
originators of experienced.
Through evolution, human beings
developed language and
symbolization.
 Human agency- as the ability to act and
make things happen.
intentionality- enable us to behave purposefully
forethought- permits us to anticipate outcomes
self-reactiveness allow us to motivate and
regulate actions
self- reflectiveness give us the ability to
reflect on our thoughts and behavior and make
changes as needed.
 Banduras Triadic
Reciprocal Causation Model
Triadic model
Behavioral Environmental
determinants determinants

Personal determinants
(cognitive, affective and
biological)
 Environmental stimuli influence our
behavior but individual personal factors
such as beliefs and expectations also
influence how we behave.
Behavior arises from the interactions of a
person and the environment.
Actions are regulated by their
consequences, external stimuli affect
behavior through intervening cognitive
processes.
Bandura used the term

SELF SYSTEM
- cognitive structures that provide reference
mechanisms.
- a set of subfunctions for the perception, evaluation
and regulation of behavior.

SELF in SCT
- a group of cognitive processes and structures by
which people relate to their environment and that help to
shape their behavior.
 Television viewing is an example of the way
in which behavioral,cognitive and
environmental factors may be interlocked.
3 Factors that reciprocally affect each
other
- viewer preferences
-viewing behavior
-televised offerings
Observational Learning
-occurs either intentionally or
accidentally.
Imitation- mimicking the model
Modeling- matching the structure or
style of the behavior.
 Modeling
We learn much of what we do through
observing and speaking with others
(models), rather than through personal
experience
We form a cognitive image of how to
perform certain behaviors through
modeling, and use this image as a guide for
later behaviors
 The Bobo Doll Study
Albert Banduras Bobo doll study in 1961 was a
classic study that demonstrates the social
learning theory. The study showed that after
viewing adults strike and kick a Bobo doll, children
would imitate the behavior in another
environment. This was important, as it suggests
that the violence could be imitated by viewers.
Results showed 88% of the children imitated
aggressive behavior following the viewing of the
tape of adults acting aggressively toward the doll.
8 months later 40% of the same children
reproduced the violent behavior observed in the
Bobo doll experiment.
The Bobo Doll Study
The children were shown
three different endings to
the video. The video first
showed that the adults
were praised for their
aggressive behavior. The
second group the adult was
told to sit in a corner. The
third group showed the
adult walk out of the room.
While controversial,
Bandura maintained that
his experiment
demonstrated that
children are influenced by
witnessing or modeling of
aggression in others.
 Response measures
1. Total aggression
2. Imitative
aggression
3. Partially imitative
responses
Mallet aggression
Sitting on the
Bobo doll
3 Factors that Influence
Modeling
Characteristic of the Model
Attributes of the Observer
Reward Consequences Associated
with a Behavior
 Basic Processes of
Observational Learning
1. Attentional Processes
(attend to and accurately
perceive models behavior)

2. Retention Processes
(remember the
models behavior)
 Basic Processes of
Observational Learning
3. Motor Reproduction Processes
(translate symbolically coded
memories of the models behavior
into new response patterns)

4. Motivational Processes
(if positive reinforcement is
potentially available, enact the
modeled behavior)
 Reinforcement in
Observational Learning
Extrinsic Reinforcement
- arbitrary or socially arranged rather
than natural outcome of the behavior.
Intrinsic Reinforcement
-some behaviors produce a natural
physiological effect.
(e.g. relaxation exercises relieve
muscle fatigue)
 Vicarious Reinforcement
- occurs when we learn
appropriate behavior from the
success and mistakes of other.
Self- Reinforcement
-increase performance primarily
through its motivational function.
 Self-Regulation and
Cognition
We can exercise control over our behavior
through self-regulation
We are not slaves to environmental influences
We have free will
Cognition allows us to use previous experiences,
rather than trial-and-error, to foresee probable
consequences of our acts, and behave accordingly
Self-regulation allows us to choose behaviors
that help us to avoid punishments and move
towards long-term goals
 Aggression, Inhumane
Behavior and Moral
Disengagement

Bandura studied the impact of a live

model as opposed to a filmed model
and a cartoon model.
 Bandura et al. Results :
Total Aggression
Girls Boys

Female Male Female Male Cartoon No Model

Real life model Film model Model Control
 Bandura et al. Results :
Partially Imitative Responses
Mallet Aggression Sits On Bobo Doll

F M F M Cat Cntrl M
F F M Cat Cntrl
Real life Film
Real life Film
 Banduras Theory
Human beings have specific
abilities related to learning
that sets them apart from
other species.
Social cognitive theory states
that there are three
characteristics that are
unique to humans:
Vicarious consequences
(Model and imitate others)
Selfefficacy (self
reflection)
Performance standards and
moral conduct (Ability to
regulate ones own behavior)
Self Efficacy
- a central mechanism of personal agency
and self- regulation
-entails judgment of personal capacity

Collective Efficacy
- groups shared belief in its ability to
organize and carry out actions that will
lead to fulfillment of certain group goals.
 Summary
We acquire, maintain, and modify behaviors that
we see others perform
We decide which behaviors to keep, and when to
use them, by using:
symbolic thought
emotion
self-regulation
Bandura and other Social Learning Theorists put
the person back into personality by stressing
the interplay of personal factors, environmental
factors, and behavior
Thank You!

Easter Joy Costelo

Charles Diether Castillo