Environment, Reinforcement, and Social-cognitive Theory

Environment, Reinforcement, and Social-cognitive Theory

Social cognitive theory focuses on the significance of observation, modelling, and imitation of other people’s attitudes, behaviours, and emotional reactions (Olson, Favero & Hergenhahn, 2019). This theory considers how the cognitive and environmental aspects interact to affect human behaviour and learning. The mastermind behind the social cognitive theory, Albert Bandura, based his concept on the idea that behaviour is learned via the observational learning process from the environment and that mediating processes happen between responses and stimuli (Olson, Favero & Hergenhahn, 2019). Through observational learning, children are able to observe the people in their environment and emulate their behaviours in various ways. More often than not, the people that children observe are called models, including family, parents, characters in the children’s favourite programs on television, teachers at school, and peers or friends. The models give children examples of behaviours that they can imitate from observation. Children tend to pay keen attention to the models and reserve their behaviour to imitate later in their lives in their behaviour. According to Miltenberger (2015), children may copy their model’s behaviours, whether the behaviours are gender appropriate or not. However, children encounter other factors and processes that facilitate their likelihood of emulating their models’ behaviour in society. For instance, a child tends to emulate the behaviour or models they can relate to in terms of gender or other similar characteristics. In the process, the people surrounding the child may respond to the behaviour that the child emulates with punishment or reinforcement. If the imitated behaviour yields rewarding consequences, the child would most likely continue behaving that way. For example, if a child sees on a TV program that their model studies and completes their assignment before watching television or playing with friends and are rewarded with tickets to watch favourite shows and compliments from parents, they are likely to embrace completion of assignments before partaking recreational activities like watching favourite shows on TV. It is likely that the child would repeat the assignment completion before recreational activities and behaviour after school. In this case, the behaviour of the child has been reinforced.

Moreover, reinforcement may be internal or external and also negative or positive. For instance, if the aim of a child is to get compliments from parents or teachers, this reinforcement is external. But if the child aims to feel good about themselves, these compliments are internal reinforcement. Miltenberger (2015) adds that children are likely to behave in a manner they believe will give them compliments because that is what they desire. However, negative or positive reinforcement can be less impactful if it is given externally and does not meet the needs of the person in question. Whether the reinforcement is negative or positive, it will change the individual’s behaviour.

In addition, the child is likely to pay keen attention to what happens to their peers when they decide to copy or not copy someone’s behaviour. In other words, they learn from observing the results of their models’ behaviours. For instance, if a child sees that her model is rewarded with the opportunity of playing in the school field after completing classwork, they are likely to repeat the behaviour of finishing classwork so they can join others in the field to play. According to Apps, Lesage & Ramnani (2015), this is known as vicarious reinforcement.

Furthermore, Nabi & Clark (2008) find that social cognitive theory is basically about the processes and functions of vicarious learning. This entails observing other people’s behaviours, including those in television movies and programs and then developing rules as guidance for subsequent actions. Nabi & Clark (2008) argue that observational learning is directed by four processes moderated by the observer’s skills and cognitive development. Firstly, attention to specific models and their behaviour is influenced by contextual characteristics and sources like affective valence, functional need, relevance, and attractiveness (Nabi & Clark, 2008). Secondly, retention processes revolve around the capacity to symbolically represent the observed behaviour and its results and any rehearsal. Thirdly, the production processes translate the symbolic representation to actions, reproduce the behaviour in what appears to be an appropriate context, and mend the faults based on the received feedback (Bandura, 2014). Lastly, motivational processes affect whether the symbolically represented behaviour is passed in accordance with the valence or nature of negative or positive reinforcement (Bandura, 2014).

In sum, when applying this knowledge to the depiction of behaviour from television programs and movies, viewers tend to identify their favourite characters in movies and TV programs and relate and emulate their behaviours. For instance, if safe sex or abstinence is practised in a certain TV movie, the viewer is more likely to relate with their favourite character who is practising safe sex or abstinence and adopts behaviour that would avoid unprotected sex, especially when this behaviour leads to positive consequences such as being a responsible parent in future. If the character engages in unprotected sex, and the result of their behaviour is shown as regret, responsibility without resources, and guilt, the viewer is not likely to engage in unsafe sex because of the negative outcome of the model’s behaviour. When the model on TV abstains from sex, they are able to concentrate on their studies and pass their exams. The reinforcement, in this case, maybe a certificate reward or scholarship reward to study what they want to be in life. Later, they would have enough resources to raise a family and be responsible parents. When a viewer observes this behaviour, they are likely to encode it and practice it later in life with the hope of getting similar rewards. On the other hand, when the model engages in unsafe sexual behaviour, and the TV program shows the effects of their action as pregnancy, being young with the responsibility of raising a child, or contraction of sexually transmitted diseases, the viewer is likely to reconsider their emulated behaviour and learn that adopting such behaviour would get them in trouble.

References

Apps, M. A., Lesage, E., & Ramnani, N. (2015). Vicarious reinforcement learning signals when instructing others. Journal of Neuroscience, 35(7), 2904-2913.

Bandura, A. (2014). Social-cognitive theory. In An introduction to theories of personality (pp. 341-360). Psychology Press.

Miltenberger, R.G. (2015). Behaviour Modification: Principles and Procedures (6^th Edition). Boston: Cengage Learning.

Nabi, R. L., & Clark, S. (2008). Exploring the limits of social cognitive theory: Why negatively reinforced behaviours on TV may be modelled anyway. Journal of Communication, 58(3), 407-427.

Olson, M.H., Favero, D. & Hergenhahn, B.H. (2019). An Introduction to Theories of Personality. Pearson Education.

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Introductory paragraph: In your readings, you learned about the effect of the environment, reinforcement, and the social-cognitive theory on actions and behaviour. In this assignment, you will have the opportunity to apply these theories and concepts to a current debate about the impact of media on behaviour and personality.

Unit 8 Assignment: This week, you will complete a 2–3-page expository paper exploring how the environment, reinforcement and social-cognitive theory can work together to influence behaviour. Then, you will apply that knowledge to the impact of media on behaviour and actions in personality development.

Discuss how the environment, reinforcement, and social-cognitive theory can work together to change behaviour.
Apply information about reinforcement and the social cognitive theory to determine if there should be concern about the content of television programs and movies as it contributes to personality development. (Can it impact behaviour?)
Provide reliable research to support your view.

NB:
Introductory paragraph: In your readings, you learned about the effect of the environment, reinforcement, and the social-cognitive theory on actions and behaviour. In this assignment, you will have the opportunity to apply these theories and concepts to a current debate about the impact of media on behaviour and personality.

Unit 8 Assignment: This week, you will complete a 2–3-page expository paper exploring how the environment, reinforcement and social-cognitive theory can work together to influence behaviour. Then, you will apply that knowledge to the impact of media on behaviour and actions in personality development.

Discuss how the environment, reinforcement, and social-cognitive theory can work together to change behaviour.
Apply information about reinforcement and the social cognitive theory to determine if there should be concern about the content of television programs and movies as it contributes to personality development. (Can it impact behaviour?)
Provide reliable research to support your view.