The last century in the countries of the Western world has become a real century of psychology, it was during this period that many of the modern psychological schools were born. Social learning theory was created in the same historical period. This concept remains very popular today in the countries of the Western world, while we, in Russia, do not yet have detailed information about it.
Let's consider in this article the main provisions of this theory and the history of its development.
What is this theory about?
According to this concept, a child, being born, learns the values, norms of behavior and traditions of the society in which he lives. This mechanism can be used as a holistic teaching of children not only behavioral skills, but also certain knowledge, as well as skills, values and skills.
The scientists who developed this theory paid special attention to learning by imitation. Moreover, on the one hand, they relied on behaviorism as a classical theory explaining the causes of human behavior, and, on the other hand, on psychoanalysis created by Z. Freud.
In general, this concept is a work that, having appeared on the pages of thick academic journals, has become verydemanded by American society. She was fond of both politicians who dreamed of learning the laws of human behavior and managing a large number of people through them, and representatives of other professions: from military personnel and policemen to housewives.
Socialization as the central concept of the concept
The theory of social learning largely contributed to the fact that the concept of socialization, which meant the child's assimilation of the norms and values of the society in which he lives, has become very popular in psychological and pedagogical science. In social psychology, the concept of socialization has become central. At the same time, Western scientists divided spontaneous socialization (uncontrolled by adults, during which a child learns from peers information that his parents do not always try to tell him, for example, about the characteristics of sexual relations between people) and centralized socialization (by which scientists understood directly education).
Such an understanding of upbringing as a specially organized process of socialization did not find understanding among domestic pedagogy, therefore this provision is still being disputed in Russian pedagogical science.
The theory of social learning claims that socialization is a concept equal to the phenomenon of education, however, in other psychological and pedagogical schools of the West, socialization has received other qualitative interpretations. For example, in behaviorism it is interpreted as directly social learning itself, in Gest alt psychology - asa consequence of social interaction between people, in humanistic psychology - as a result of self-actualization.
Who developed this theory?
The theory of social learning, the main ideas of which were voiced by scientists at the beginning of the last century, was created in the American and Canadian works of authors such as A. Bandura, B. Skinner, R. Sears.
However, even these psychologists, being like-minded, considered the main provisions of the theory they created in different ways.
Bandura studied this theory from the point of view of an experimental approach. Through numerous experiments, the author revealed a direct relationship between examples of different behavior and imitation of it by children.
Sears consistently argued that a child during his life goes through three phases of imitation of adults, the first of which is unconscious, and the second two are conscious.
Skinner created the theory of the so-called reinforcement. He believed that the assimilation of a new model of behavior in a child occurs precisely due to such reinforcement.
Thus, it is impossible to answer the question of which of the scientists developed the theory of social learning, unequivocally. This was done in the work of a whole group of American and Canadian scientists. Later this theory became popular in European countries.
Experiments by A. Bandura
For example, A. Bandura believed that the goal of the educator is the need to form a new model of behavior in the child. At the same time, in achieving this goal, it is impossible to use onlytraditional forms of educational influence, such as persuasion, rewards or punishments. A fundamentally different system of behavior of the educator himself is needed. Children, observing the behavior of a person significant to them, will unconsciously adopt his feelings and thoughts, and then the entire holistic line of behavior.
In confirmation of his theory, Bandura conducted the following experiment: he gathered several groups of children and showed them films with different content. Children who watched films with an aggressive plot (aggression at the end of the film was rewarded) copied violent behavior in their manipulations with toys after watching the movie. Children who watched films with the same content, but in which aggression was punished, also demonstrated pronounced hostility, but in smaller volumes. Children who watched films without violent content did not show it in their games after watching the movie.
Thus, the experimental studies conducted by A. Bandura proved the main provisions of the theory of social learning. These studies have found a direct link between the viewing of various films and the behavior of children. Bandura's propositions were soon recognized as true propositions throughout the scientific world.
The essence of Bandura's theory
The author of the theory of social learning - Bandura - believed that a person's personality should be considered in the interaction of his behavior, social environment and cognitive sphere. In his opinion, it is the situational factors and the factorspredispositions determine human behavior. The scientist believed that people themselves can consciously change a lot in their behavior, but for this their personal understanding of the essence of ongoing events and desire is very important.
It is this scientist who came up with the idea that people are both a product of their own behavior and the creators of their own social environment and, accordingly, its behavior.
Unlike Skinner, Bandura did not point out that everything depends on external reinforcement of human behavior. After all, people can not just copy someone's behavior by watching him, but read about such manifestations in books or see them in films and so on.
According to A. Bandura, the central concept in the theory of social learning is precisely learning, conscious or unconscious, which is adopted by every person born on earth from his immediate environment.
At the same time, the scientist pointed out that people's behavior is regulated mainly by the fact that they understand the consequences of their actions. Even a criminal going to rob a bank understands that the consequence of his actions can be a long prison term, but he goes to this business, hoping that he will avoid punishment and receive a big win, which is expressed in a certain amount of money. Thus, the mental processes of the human personality give people, unlike animals, the ability to foresee their actions.
Works of psychologist R. Sears
The theory of social learning has found its embodiment in the works of psychologist R. Sears. The scientist suggestedconcept of dyadic analysis of personal development. The psychologist said that the child's personality is formed as a result of dyadic relationships. It is the relationship between a mother and her child, a daughter and a mother, a son and a father, a teacher and a student, etc.
At the same time, the scientist believed that the child in his development goes through three stages of imitation:
- rudimentary imitation (occurs at an early age at an unconscious level);
- primary imitation (the beginning of the process of socialization within the family);
- secondary motivational imitation (starts from the moment the child enters school).
The most important of these phases, the scientist considered the second, which was associated with family education.
Forms of dependent behavior of the child (according to Sears)
The theory of social learning (briefly called learning theory) in Sears's work suggested the identification of several forms of dependent behavior of children. Their formation depended on the relationship between the child and adults (his parents) in the first years of the baby's life.
Let's consider them in more detail.
First form. negative attention. With this form, the child tries to attract the attention of adults by any means, even the most negative.
Second form. Seeking confirmation. The child is constantly looking for comfort from adults.
The third form. positive attention. Child seeking praise from significant adults.
The fourth form. Search for special closeness. The child needs constant attentionadults.
The fifth form. Search for touch. The child needs constant physical attention, expressing love from parents: caress and hugs.
The scientist considered all these forms quite dangerous because they were extremes. He advised parents to stick to the golden mean in education and not bring things to the point that these forms of dependent behavior began to progress in the child.
B. Skinner concept
The theory of social learning has found its embodiment in the works of Skinner. The main thing in his scientific theory is the phenomenon of the so-called reinforcement. He suggests that reinforcement, expressed by encouragement or reward, greatly increases the likelihood of the child learning the proposed behavior model.
Reinforcement scientist divides into two large groups, conventionally calling it positive reinforcement and negative. He refers to positive things that have a positive effect on the development of the child, to negative things that lead to failures in his development and form social deviations (for example, addiction to alcohol, drugs, etc.).
Also, according to Skinner, reinforcement can be primary (natural exposure, food, etc.) and conditional (love signs, monetary units, attention signs, etc.).
By the way, B. Skinner was a consistent opponent of any punishment in raising children, believing that they are absolutely harmful, as they are a negative reinforcement.
Worksother scientists
The social learning theory briefly reviewed above has found its way into the work of other psychologists in the US and Canada.
Thus, the scientist J. Gewirtz studied the conditions for the birth of social motivation in children. The psychologist came to the conclusion that such motivation is created in the process of interaction between adults and children and manifests itself from infancy in the latter in the fact that children laugh or cry, scream or, conversely, behave peacefully.
J. Gewirtz's colleague, American W. Bronfenbrenner, paid special attention to the problem of personality development in a family environment and pointed out that social learning occurs primarily under the influence of parents.
As the author of the theory of social learning, Bronfenbrenner described and examined in detail the phenomenon of the so-called age segregation. Its essence was as follows: young people, having left certain families, cannot find themselves in life, they do not know what to do with them, and feel like strangers to everyone around them.
The works of the scientist on this topic turned out to be very popular in his contemporary society. Bronfenbrenner cited the reasons for such social exclusion as the need for mothers to spend a lot of time away from their families and children at work, the growth of divorces, leading to the fact that children cannot fully communicate with their fathers, the lack of communication with both parents, the passion of family members for products modern technical culture (televisions, etc.), which hinders the interaction of adults and children, reducing contacts within a large intergenerationalfamily.
At the same time, Bronfenbrenner believed that such an organization of the family negatively affects the personalities of children, which leads to their alienation from both family members and the whole society.
Useful chart: The evolution of social learning theory over the past century
Thus, having considered the works of a number of scientists, we can conclude that this theory, having arisen at the beginning of the last century, has gone through a long period of its formation, having been enriched in the works of many scientists.
The term itself originated in 1969 in the writings of the Canadian Albert Bandura, but the theory itself received its holistic design both in the writings of the scientist himself and his ideological followers.
The evolution of social learning theory, also called social-cognitive theory, suggests that the most important thing in a person's life is the example of the behavior of the people around him.
Another key term of this concept was the phenomenon of self-regulation. A person can change his behavior at will. Moreover, he can form an image of the desired future in his mind and do everything to make his dream a reality. People who have no purpose in life, who have a vague idea of their future (they are called "go with the flow"), lose a lot compared to those people who have decided how they want to see themselves in years and decades. Another problem that is touched upon in their works, includingsupporters of this concept: what to do if the goal cannot be realized?
After all, in this case, a person has a burning disappointment in life, which can lead him to depression and suicidal thoughts.
Results: what did this concept bring to science?
In the West, this concept remains among the popular theories of personality development. Many books have been written on it, scientific works have been defended, and films have been made.
Every representative of the theory of social learning is a scientist with a capital S, recognized in the scientific world. By the way, many popular books on psychology use this theory either in whole or in part. In this regard, it is appropriate to recall the book of the once popular psychologist D. Carnegie, in which simple advice was given on how to win the favor of people. In this book, the author relied on the works of representatives of the theory we are studying.
Based on this theory, the principles of working not only with children, but also with adults were developed. It is still relied upon in the training of military personnel, medical workers, and educational workers.
Psychologists, addressing the problems of family relationships and counseling couples, resort to the basics of this concept.
The first author of the theory of social learning (named A. Bandura) did a lot to ensure that his scientific research was so widely disseminated. Indeed, today the name of this scientist is known all over the world, and his concept is included in all textbooks onsocial psychology!
