2.3-
Social Cognitive Theory
Albert Bandura
"We are what we see in others.
The School of Health Sciences, Ngee Ann Polytechnic, Singapore
Part 1
A Short Introduction to Albert Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory
Albert Bandura (1977) stated that behaviour is learned from the environment through the process of observational learning, modeling and repetition for positive and negative reinforcement. Social Cognitive Theory originated from Albert Bandura, who believed that behaviour and the environment affected each other. In essence, be believed that learning could not be fully explained simply through reinforcement, but that the presence of others was also an influence. He noticed that the consequences of an observed behaviour often determined whether or not children adopted the behaviour themselves. Through a series of experiments, he watched children as they observed adults attacking Bobo Dolls. When hit, the dolls fell over and then bounced back up again. Then children were then let loose, and imitated the aggressive behaviour of the adults. However, when they observed adults acting aggressively and then being punished, Bandura noted that the children were less willing to imitate the aggressive behaviour themselves.
Watch Bandura's experiment below.
The results of the Bobo Doll experiment yielded four distinct observations:
Children exposed to the violent model tended to imitate the exact behavior they had observed when the adult was no longer present.
While children of both genders in the non-aggressive group did exhibit less aggression than the control group, boys who had observed an opposite-sex model behavior non-aggressively were more likely than those in the control group to engage in violence.
Boys who observed an adult male behaving violently were more influenced than those who had observed a female model behavior aggressively. Interestingly, the experimenters found in the same-sex aggressive groups, boys were more likely to imitate physical acts of violence while girls were more likely to imitate verbal aggression.
Boys behaved more aggressively than girls. Boys engaged in more than twice as many acts of aggression than the girls.
Stages
From his research Bandura formulated four principles of social learning. These were:
Attention
For a behavior to be imitated, it has to grab our attention. We observe many behaviors on a daily basis, and many of these are not noteworthy. Attention is therefore extremely important in whether a behavior influences others imitating it.
Retention
The behavior may be noticed but is it not always remembered which obviously prevents imitation. It is important therefore that a memory of the behavior is formed to be performed later by the observer. Much of social learning is not immediate, so this process is especially vital in those cases. Even if the behavior is reproduced shortly after seeing it, there needs to be a memory to refer to.
Reproduction
This is the ability to perform the behavior that the model has just demonstrated. We see much behavior on a daily basis that we would like to be able to imitate but that this not always possible. We are limited by our physical ability and for that reason, even if we wish to reproduce the behavior, we cannot. This influences our decisions whether to try and imitate it or not.
Imagine the scenario of a 2-year-child who struggles to walk watching Dancing on Ice. She may appreciate that the skill is a desirable one, but she will not attempt to imitate it because she physically cannot do it.
Motivation
The will to perform the behavior. The rewards and punishment that follow a behavior will be considered by the observer. If the perceived rewards outweigh the perceived costs (if there are any), then the behavior will be more likely to be imitated by the observer. Reward is not always necessary, however, and a learner may imitate the behaviour of a role model even when no reward is available.
Perceptions of self-efficacy influence children’s choices and beliefs in themselves, including the goals they choose to pursue and the effort they put into them, how long they’re willing to persevere in the face of obstacles and setbacks, and the outcomes they expect. Thus, self-efficacy influences one’s motivations to perform various actions and one's belief in their ability to do so.
Such beliefs can impact personal growth and change. For example, research has shown that enhancing self-efficacy beliefs is more likely to result in the improvement of health habits than the use of fear-based communication. Belief in one’s self-efficacy can be the difference between whether or not an individual even considers making positive changes in their life.
Part 2
Application of Albert Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory
When do kids start to care about other people's opinions?
Drawing on her research into early childhood development, psychologist Sara Valencia Botto investigates when (and how) children begin to change their behaviors in the presence of others -- and explores what it means for the values we communicate in daily interactions. Adults and children are effective at picking up values from subtle behaviour. And this in turn ends up shaping their behaviour. Social Cognition begins even in infancy.
2.2 SaraBotto_2019X-480p-en.mp4This video by Sara Valencia Botto is hosted in Ted Talk within this link: https://www.ted.com/talks/sara_valencia_botto_when_do_kids_start_to_care_about_other_people_s_opinions
Part 3
Case study: The Application of Social Cognitive Theory on Mothers’ Feeding Practices for Children Aged 6 to 24 Months old in Iran
Psychosocial Challenges for Children with Insulin-Dependent Diabetes Mellitus
Proper nutrition is essential for present and future health of children and nutritional habits established in early years continue to adulthood. The first two years of life, especially from 6 to 24 months of age, is a critical period of growth and physical, social, emotional and brain development in which nutritional needs are more important . Complementary Feeding between 6 and 24 months of age underlies nutritional habits in adulthood which can be formed by mothers through these habits. This study was conducted in Kerman aiming to apply the social cognitive theory (SCT) in feeding practices of mothers for their children aged 6 to 24 months
Read the full article to find out more. Click here .
Next Section
We will now move on to take closer look at the Health Belief Model and how it can help tackle Childhood Obesity.
References
Anjomshoa, H., Mirzaee, M., & Iranpour, A. The Application of Social Cognitive Theory on Mothers’ Feeding Practices for Children Aged 6 to 24 Months old in Iran. Int J Pediatr 2018; 6(7): 7983-97. DOI: 10.22038/ijp.2018.28326.2459
McLeod, S. A. (2016). Bandura - social learning theory. Retrieved from
www.simplypsychology.org/bandura.html
The Curious Classroom. (2013, August 13). Bandura and Social Learning Theory. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjTxQy_U3ac
Rolling, T.E., & Hong, M.,Y. (2016) The Effect of Social Cognitive Theory-Based Interventions on Dietary Behavior within Children. J Nutrition Health Food Sci 4(5): 1-9. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15226/jnhfs.2016.00179
