Media Research Paper About Mass Communication Theory

Social Learning Theory
Name
Institutional affiliation
Social Learning Theory
Introduction
It was contributed in 1925 by Albert Bandura. It combines the cognitive and behavioral learning theories. Cognitive learning theory explains that the processes of learning can be interpreted by analyzing the processes of the brain/mind. It posits that it is through effective cognitive processes that learning is made easier and the storage of new information is done in the mind over time. It also argues that ineffective cognitive processes lead to difficulties in gathering new knowledge and are evident throughout the lifetime of an individual. Behavioral learning theory only focuses on the behavior that is observable which paying little attention to the independence of the mind. It argues that people learn by observing and studying what other people are doing. Albert Bandura combined the two theories to develop a theory that argues that people learn through both the combination of recording and adapting to the environment and the operations of the mind. The theory argues that people learn through the observation of other individual’s behavior and the results of those behaviors. He posits that people learn via observing what others are doing and from the results of the actions, they create a code that will act as a guide for action.
Principles of social learning theory
Learning by observation
The theory argues that people learn through observing the action of other people around them. For example, the character of a child heavily depends on the people who love them. A child will observe the actions of other people and try to imitate what they are doing. It is through observation that people can draw the line between what is wrong and what it right. This is seconded by the fact that they will choose the actions that have the best results and choose to follow them leaving behind those that they do not like (Huang, 2016).
Learning is an internal process
It argues that learning is an internal process which may or may not have an impact on the behavior of an individual. As earlier stated people will often choose the actions which have the best results. They simply do not copy all the actions of the people and end up being totally different personalities of the people around them. For instance, a person might grow up in a gang-infested neighborhood. But after seeing the results of gangbanging they choose to focus on education and to create a better life for themselves. It argues that learning is an internal process which may or may not have an impact on the behavior of a person. Others might see the gang life and become attracted to it because of the fast money and profits, however other might choose to avoid it at all costs.
Achievement of goals
Albert states that people act in the way they do to achieve the goals they have set. The main reason why people behave in the way they do is for them to attain certain goals they may have set in the past (Rhee, & Park, 2010). For one to be successful in life, they should set goals they need to achieve. These goals are very significant in the life of an individual during self-evaluation. They are a saying that says failing to plan is planning to fail, and the first step of setting goals is through planning. The goals are also important because they give one a sense of direction and encourages one to move ahead in life. They are also important because they give a sense of motivation where one feels that he/she cannot rest until they have achieved their goals. For people to achieve the goals, they have to behave in certain ways, and that is following the guide that already developed in their mind.
Behavior as self-directed
It opposes the behavioral thought that behavior is ascertained by the environment and argues that behavior is self-directed. As stated earlier people choose what they see that will benefit them in the long run and choose to follow that path. People will choose ways that are beneficial to themselves and the community at large. Behaviorists argue that people learn only via the environment around them. This is not the case because an individual has the choice to choose between right and wrong because of the code of guidance already in their mind.
Punishment
It continues to argue that punishment and reinforcement have unpredictable impacts on the behavior and learning. After doing a wrong thing, punishment is inevitable, and people have to face it to pay for whatever wrong they committed. The different forms of punishment later have various impacts on the individuals, for instance, an individual might choose to change their ways and stop wrong-doing. On the other hand, there are other characters who will become more addicted to wrong-doing instead of changing their minds about the subject. It is important to comprehend that rewards are present for any right-doing.
Characteristics of social learning theory
There are three main characteristics, namely observational, self-regulated and vicarious learning. Observational learning uses the ability of an individual to pay attention (attention), retain what is learned (retention), and reproduce what they have learned (reproduction) and the motivation of the action (Harris, Graham, Urdan, Sinatra, &Sweller, 2012). Attention has to do with the factors that contribute to the amount of attention that the learner pays. One of the major issues that affect the amount of attention paid is the characteristics of an individual. The characteristics of a person play a huge role in how they are going to pay attention. Some people easily lose concentration after a few minutes a disorder that has been described as dyslexia. Dyslexia is a condition which most people lose attention after the first few minutes into something. On the other hand, there are individuals who have a high concentration power and will follow through each step of the instructions. Some people do not fully read the instructions that they are supposed to follow, maybe because of ignorance at the same time there are those who read all the instructions and follow them to the letter. This clearly shows that the characteristics of an individual play a role of attention they will pay.
The second one is retention that has to do with remembering what the individual was paying attention to. It could be in the form of symbolic coding, the creation of mental images or through symbolic rehearsal (Sherlin, 2011). It has to do with the memory of an individual and how it records what had been paid attention been to. Without the memory, one could not be able to remember what they had previously observed. Memory is significant for the progress of any human. This is because it one will always forget the things they had previously learned. Here the characteristics of individuals also come to play whereby some people have short term memory or may suffer from memory loss. The memory loss often leads to the individual failing to learn a lot in life. On the other hand, some people have perfect memory and can understand things at high rates. These people have a higher chance of adapting to...