5.1.5 Bandura's Research

The Bobo doll study - Bandura et al (1961)

A controlled lab experiment on observational learning

Aim:

🎯 To investigate if social behaviours (e.g. aggression) can be acquired through observation and imitation.

Procedure:

1. Children observed an aggressive or non-aggressive model and were then tested for imitative learning in the absence of the model (modelling).
2. Children were then taken to a room with attractive toys and told not to play with them (aggression arousal).
3. Children were then taken individually to a room containing a Bobo doll, and aggressive and non-aggressive toys.

Results:

🎈The children who had observed the aggressive model were more aggressive than the children who had observed the non-aggressive model.

🎈The boys imitated more physically aggressive acts than the girls.

Conclusion:

This supports SLT as it shows that children imitate the behaviour of role models even if the behaviour is aggressive.

The Bobo doll study - Bandura and Walters (1963)

Experiment was repeated

Procedure:

One group saw the model praised, another saw them punished and another saw them get no consequence for their aggressive behaviour.

Results:

🎈 When left on their own to play, the children who saw the model praised showed the most aggression followed by the children who saw the model receive no consequence.

🎈 Children who saw the model punished were the least aggressive

Conclusion:

This shows that imitation is more likely to occur if the model is positively reinforced, demonstrating the significance of vicarious reinforcement.

Positive evaluation:

Negative evaluation: