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Social Learning Theory Paper

Mikaela Kavanaugh
Educational Psychology 302
November 8, 2014
As the famous quote by Julius Caesar goes, I came, I saw, I conquered (Julius
Caesar Quote). This quote is one that perfectly defines the social learning theory. The
founder of the social learning theory, Albert Bandura, believes the people learn by
observing others and, in order for this to work, cognitive processing must take place.
While this cognitive processing occurs, people consider the relationship between their
behavior and its consequences (McLeod 1). In this paper, I will discuss the types of
social modeling, the conditions necessary for successful modeling, what self-efficacy is,
what self-regulation means, and finally, how to apply it to a classroom.
Response facilitation, response inhibition, and response disinhibition are the
three types of social modeling (Hawkes). Response facilitation provokes a desired
response from the observer by rewarding the model (Clark). For example, if a teacher
desires to teach her students to raise their hands before getting out of their seats it is
important to reward the students raising their hands. If a student raises his hand to go
sharpen his pencil, the student is rewarded for raising his hand by being allowed to
sharpen his pencil. However, if a student does not raise his hand and gets out of his seat
to sharpen his pencil the student should not be rewarded but instead reprimanded for
getting out of his seat by losing 5 minutes of recess. This would be a display of response
inhibition. Response inhibition makes the observer not want to display a certain type of

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action, such as getting out of his seat without raising his hand, by seeing the model
being punished for it (Clark). Response disinhibition modeling would not want to be
displayed in a classroom. Response disinhibition reduces an observers fear by seeing
the model perform an action they should not have and then go unpunished (Clark). If
the model does not raise his hand, gets out of his seat to sharpen his pencil, sharpens
the pencil, and retakes his seat without being punished he would be displaying response
disinhibition. The three types of social modeling, response facilitation, response
inhibition, and response disinhibition will all take place in a classroom at some point
and students will learn by observing the models.
In order for learning from modeled behavior to take place in the classroom, there
are four conditions necessary for successful modeling. The four conditions necessary are
attention, retention, reproduction, and motivation (Cherry). Attention refers to the
observer watching what the model does, retention states that the observer then
remembers what the model did, reproduction means the observer must be physically
capable to duplicate the modeled behavior, and motivation simply means that the
observer has to be motivated to repeat the behavior (Hawkes). These conditions are all
very important because if one step is missing the observer may not complete the task
appropriately. For instance, if the observer does not remember what the model did the
observer may forget to raise his hand, which would lead to response inhibition or
response disinhibition. It is important that observers follow the conditions necessary for
successful modeling.
In order for an observer to complete the conditions necessary for successful
modeling, they must have self-efficacy. Self-efficacy ties in with the reproduction

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condition for successful modeling. According to Albert Bandura, self-efficacy is "the

belief in ones capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to
manage prospective situations" (Cherry). This means that it is important that the
observer have the confidence to execute a behavior appropriately. Self-efficacy is usually
specific to a situation and past experiences can influence the situation (Hawkes). For
example, if a student in the past had failed at hitting a baseball with a bat and was made
fun of, or forced to keep trying when he could not do it, his confidence levels may have
plummeted. The next time the student attempted to hit the baseball with the bat he
would have low self-efficacy and not believe that he could execute the behavior. If a
student observes response facilitation taking place with someone similar to himself this
could help to boost his confidence levels (Hawkes). It is important that students have
self-efficacy to accomplish the desired behavior.
While it is important that students have self-efficacy, it is also crucial that
students be self-regulated. Self-regulation refers to monitoring and assessing our own
behaviors (Hawkes). There are three simple steps, which are self-observation, judgment,
and self-response (Boeree). Self-observation simply means we take a step back and look
at our behaviors. Judgment refers to comparing yourself to a standard or for example,
comparing yourself to a student who correctly displays the behavior. Lastly, selfresponse states that after comparing yourself to either a standard or good classmate, you
reward yourself if deserved, with feelings of pride or substantial things like a new shirt,
or punish yourself if necessary, by not hanging with friends or feelings of remorse
(Boeree). It is also important that learners never feel ashamed and ask for help when
they need it (Ormrod). Self-regulation is important because reflection on ones own

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actions can leave more of an impact than if a teacher, parent, or peer points out the
flaws or excellences.
Self-regulation, self-efficacy, the conditions for successful modeling, and the
types of social modeling all link together and are important to implement in the
classroom. There are many ways that these can be implemented in the classroom, such
as raising your hand to sharpen your pencil in the classroom, as stated above. I believe
that one way to demonstrate the social learning theory in my classroom and help
children improve academically would be to do group projects. I always hated group
projects because I felt that I had to do most of the work but looking back, I can see how
they helped everyone in the group.
I was always outgoing, but also followed the rules, and I always ended up with a
group that was quiet, rebellious, and nervous. As I reflect on this, it was probably not
random. My teacher most likely paired me with groups like this so we could all learn
from each other. I would raise my hand to ask questions and be rewarded for it,
demonstrating to the rebellious kid the appropriate way to ask a question. The
rebellious kid would always speak their mind because they had good self-efficacy
showing the quiet kid it was ok to be confident and speak up. The quiet kid successfully
completed the conditions for modeling and was able to complete the desired behavior.
This showed the nervous kid that someone similar to him was able to achieve the
desired behavior and the nervous kid too demonstrated the completion of the modeling
steps. The rebellious student would self-regulate and compare himself to the quiet kid,
realizing that the quiet kid is rewarded more for following the rules and would adjust his

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behavior accordingly. As a teacher I will do group pairings like this often to demonstrate
the social learning theory and improve students social and academic skills.
Students learn best by observing others and replicating their behavior. The types
of social modeling, the conditions necessary for successful modeling, what self-efficacy
is, and what self-regulation means are all important in understanding how to apply it to
a classroom. Students come to the classroom, they observe other excellent students, and
they replicate their behavior. They come, they see, they conquer.

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Works Cited
Boeree, George C. "Albert Bandura." Albert Bandura. N.p., 2006. Web. 06 Nov. 2014.
Cherry, Kendra. "How Does Observational Learning Work?" About. About Education,
n.d. Web. 05 Nov. 2014.
Cherry, Kendra. "Self Efficacy: Why Believing In Yourself Is So Important." About.
About Education, n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2014.
Clark, Don. "Albert Bandura." Albert Bandura. Knowledge Jump, 3 Oct. 2010. Web. 08
Nov. 2014.
Hawkes, Mark. "Social Learning." Educational Psychology. Dakota State University,
Madison. Aug.-Dec. 2014. Lecture.
"Julius Caesar Quote." BrainyQuote. Xplore, 2011. Web. 08 Nov. 2014.
McLeod, S. A. (2011). Bandura - Social Learning Theory. Web 08 Nov. 2014.
Ormrod, Jeanne Ellis. Essentials of Educational Psychology. Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall, 2006. Print