Learning Theorist: Albert Bandura

Learning Theorist Albert Bandura
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Introduction to Theorist
Albert Bandura was born and raised in Mundare, northern Alberta, in 1925. Bandura proved to be genius and intelligent compared to his peers during childhood and later made critical educational observations. His educational journal was impressive as he managed to get good grades and later earned a baccalaureate degree in psychology. He joined the University of Iowa for further education and thus became a prominent figure in behaviorism based on his contributions to learning theories. He was famous for his Bobo Doll experiment. He later married Virginia Varns, a nursing educator in Iowa, and they had two daughters (Lestari et al., 2021). This short biography of Bandura indicates he was a noble family man who made an immense contribution to behaviorism.
Bandura’s Social Learning Theory
Social learning theory emphasizes that learning happens within social contexts. The theory considers that individuals learn from one another, including modeling, imitation, and observational learning. Bandura is considered the leading proponent of the social learning concept. Several principles underpin social learning theory. First, it holds that individuals learn by observing others’ behavior and the outcomes of such behaviors (Ilmiani et al., 2021). Second, learning happens without behavioral changes. Although behaviorists argue that learning should be depicted by an irreversible alteration in behavior, social learning theories, including Bandura, hold that learning may not necessarily be demonstrated in performance because individuals learn via observation alone. Learning may not or may lead to behavioral change. Third, the theory also indicates that cognition plays a crucial role in learning. Over the previous three decades, social learning theory has become increasingly cognitive by deciphering human learning. Expectations and knowledge concerning future punishments and reinforcements may significantly impact individuals' behavioral tendencies. Lastly, social learning theory is conceptualized as a link between cognitive learning theories and behaviorist learning models (Rumjaun & Narod, 2021).
The environment punishes and reinforces modeling in several ways. Individuals are normally appraised for replicating others' behavioral tendencies. Bandura indicated that there are several ways via which the environment influences an individual’s behavior. First, the model reinforces the observer. For instance, a student who changes the dress code to fit within a specific peer group demonstrates the potential to be accepted and thus reinforced by the particular group. The third person also reinforces the observer. In this context, the observer may be modeling someone else’s actions, for example, an intelligent student or charismatic class leader. The teacher may notice this and praise the observer for modeling this behavior, thus resulting in reinforcement. Third, the modeled behavior itself results in reinforcing implications. Many behaviors that individuals learn from others incorporate reinforcing outcomes or some level of satisfaction. For instance, a student may observe that additional efforts by an outstanding student are fun and rewarding, and as a result, put in more effort in the same area to receive such a reward. Lastly, the model’s behavior implications influence the observer’s behaviors via vicarious reinforcement. In this instance, the observer showed an increase within the same reaction after the model was reinforced for a response. Bandura used a movie of a model striking an inflatable clown doll to illustrate this to the class (Rumjaun & Narod, 2021). One cluster of students was exposed to the model being praised for such an action, and without reinforcement, they also started hitting the doll.
Impact on Areas of Cognition and Learning
Bandura made significant contributions to cognition and learning concepts. Contemporary perspectives suggest that punishment and reinforcement as having indirect implications on acquisition of new behaviors or knowledge. They are not, however, the primary or exclusive reason. Reward and punishment have an impact on how much a person exhibits a behavior they have learned. The possibility of reinforcement affects the mental processes that enhance learning. Consequently, learning depends greatly on a person's ability to pay attention. As a result, attention is fixed on the potential for reinforcement (Rumjaun & Narod, 2021). For example, when the teacher tells their child that passing a test will not be rewarded, they are unlikely to pay attention during a class dedicated to revising course materials.
Social learning theory posits behavioral and cognitive factors in different dimensions. First, Bandura makes a clear distinction between learning by observation and actually modeling what has been learned in the concept of learning without performance. The theorists also contended that attention plays a crucial role in cognitive processing in learning. In addition, people develop expectations concerning implications that future behaviors could potentiate due to being reinforced. They expect some behaviors to trigger reinforcements while others potentiate punishment. In this vein, the learner should be informed of t...