What Is Bandura's Social Learning Theory?

In 1977, Psychologist Albert Bandura proposed the Social Learning Theory. The Social Learning theory suggests that children adapt their behavior from the observation of others. It states that children observe models and later they imitate the attitudes and responses portrayed. Albert Bandura introduced the idea of humans being under control of external reward and punishment factors. The theory has been considered the bridge connecting behaviorism and cognitive learning because it takes attention, memory, and motivation to correctly imitate the selected model 's behavior (Culatta, 2013). Children observe and learn through other 's behavior, attitudes, and the outcomes of the actions presented by the model. Albert Bandura stated, " Most human behavior is learned observationally through modeling: from observing others, one forms an idea of how new behaviors are performed, and on later occasions this coded information serves as a guide for action". The Social Learning Theory explains the interaction between cognitive, behavioral, and environmental influences. Bandura believes that humans are always processing information and …show more content…
Children would develop norms based on a finite number of observations and would quickly learn what it is right in wrong. If children are exposed multiple times a day to multiple forms of aggressive behavior, it makes the learning process more difficult. Basically, children develop a much higher threshold for what they perceive to be acceptable aggressive behavior if they are exposed to it regularly. The idea of a high tolerance for aggressive behavior makes it difficult for parents to influence children differently, especially if they have engaged in similar aggressive behavior that the child has observed. Children will have a difficult time picking who is the better influence and may lead them to more punishment over time (Beresin,