Since the beginning of psychology, we have seen several great thinkers contribute innumerable ways. Over the years, many psychology schools have emerged, each giving a new perspective to the study of the subject. One of them that continues to be popular today is Behavioural Psychology, and one of its most significant contributors was social cognitive psychologist Albert Bandura.
Albert Bandura was born in Canada in 1925. He attended the only school in his town, which only consisted of two teachers, and as a result, he had to take responsibility for his learning.
For his bachelor's, he went to the University of British Columbia, where he started as a biological science major. He chose a psychology course as an elective which developed his interest. In 1949, he graduated with a Psychology degree.
He then received his master's from the University of Iowa, known for its challenging curriculum. He completed his master's in 1951 and his Ph.D. in 1952.After this, he accepted a teaching position at Stanford University in 1953.
His interest in learning and the influence of observation is reflected in the fact that he conducted a large-scale study with his first doctoral student about Social Modelling. This research focussed on the family influences on boys regarding aggression, and this study concluded that boys model aggressive styles from their families.
Perhaps the most famous of his works, the Bobo Doll experiment, focussed on how observation influenced children's behavior. The experiment exposed a group of children to an adult being violent against a bobo doll. There was another group of children who did not see violence. Instead, they saw a man playing with these toys. Further, children saw the man as violent, either punished or rewarded. All these factors gave Bandura several answers about learning aggression from observation. Those who saw the man being punished were less likely to be aggressive than those who saw the man being rewarded.
Bandura is widely known for using social learning, modelling, self-efficacy, and self-regulation concepts.
It includes −
According to this theory, learning is a cognitive process, and it takes place in a social context. In simpler words, we learn socially, and learning occurs when we observe and interact with those around us. Bandura developed this theory during his early years in research. He stated that to learn any behavior, a person observes a model and then imitates them.
He later revised his theory and renamed it the Social Cognitive Theory of learning.
Self-Regulation
The concept of self-regulation arose from the social cognitive theory of learning. It refers to an individual's ability to control their behavior. Bandura suggested the following steps regulate one's behavior
Self-Observation − It refers to an individual paying attention to their behavioral patterns.
Judgment involves comparing one's behavior to a goal or standard.
Self-response − This refers to how the individual reacts to the outcome of the behavior.
Within self-regulation are the concepts of self-punishment and self-reinforcement.
Self-reinforcement is how individuals regulate their behavior by rewarding themselves after successfully attaining any task or goal.
Self-punishment refers to the process by which one regulates behavior by giving undesirable consequences to an action or behavior.
Albert Bandura also gave the concept of self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is an individual's belief in their innate capacity to achieve a goal. In other words, it is their confidence in their skills and competence. It is key in the social cognitive theory of learning because only when individuals have confidence in themselves can they change their behavior.
Bandura's concept of self-efficacy has had great implications in educational settings. Consequent studies on the concept have found that students with higher self-efficacy perform better at school.
His findings about observational learning and the importance of modeling have also greatly contributed to skill learning in all sectors.
After his ground-breaking experiments, he was elected the president of APA in 1974. He also received Thorndike Award for Distinguished Contributions of Psychology to Education in 1999 from the APA. He then received a Lifetime Achievement award in 2001 from the Association for the Advancement of Behaviour Therapy.
In his lifetime, he has received sixteen honorary degrees from several universities, including the University of British Columbia, the University of Athens, and Alfred University, among many others.
Albert Bandura passed away at 95 in 2021, leaving behind a great body of work. He found the existing method of controlling or manipulating factors too simplistic and gave a new method to study aggression. His work is also criticized for not giving enough credit to the person observing the model. While his experiments are considered unethical by some for teaching children aggression in the Bobo Doll experiment, one cannot deny the influence it has had on psychology as a science.
Physics
Biology
Chemistry
Mathematics
Economics
Psychology
Environmental Science
Social Studies
Fashion Studies
English