OBSERVATIONAL LEARNING AND MODELING

"Observational learning occurs when people watch the actions of others and note the reinforcements they receive for their behaviors."^[1]

Modeling: imitating the behavior of others. ^[2]

The Observational Learning Process

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Bandura's Bobo the Doll Experiment

Albert Bandura's famous experiment demonstrated the effect of modeling on children. The 8 groups of children were exposed to aggressive and non-aggressive behavior and tested the acquisition of new behavior in absence of the model. The children were rated on a scale of aggressiveness prior to the experiment and were matched accordingly. 

All subjects were exposed to mild aggression arousal to insure they were under some instigation to aggression. The children were then brought into a room and were shown and told to partake in a familiar task they had observed in their studies in nursery school. The child was also told that the bobo doll, mallet and tinker set were for the model to play with. The model in the non aggressive condition assembled a tinker toy and ignored the bobo doll.  The model in the aggressive condition played with the toy for a minute and then proceeded to show physically aggressive acts, interspersed with verbally aggressive responses. The children were then left alone in the room. ^[4]

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Are the children exposed to violence on TV and in video games at risk?

Bully: Scholarship Edition

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Welcome To BullWorth Academy, The Worst School In The State^[7]

This video game portrays the life of a high school student who can't seem to "keep his nose clean." Jimmy beats up bullies, knocks out another student by throwing items and shoots bus windows with a slingshot.  Fighting is the integral part of the game and includes violence against girls, smaller kids and adults. ^[8]

Cognitive Learning Theory

"This perspective views people as problem solvers who actively use information from the world around them to master their environments."^[9]

Social learning may affect behavior in the following ways:

• Teaches new behaviors. 
• Increases or decreases the frequency with which previously learned behaviors are carried out.
• Can encourage previously forbidden behaviors.
• Can increase or decrease similar behaviors.

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How Marketers Apply Observational Learning and Social Learning Techniques

• If the product shows what happens to desirable models who use it, the consumer will often imitate these actions at a later time.^[11]
• Marketers can show how a consumer appears without the product, and guide behavior towards the product for a favorable outcome. ^[12]
• By showing unfavorable circumstances, it may decrease further problems.
  

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