Describe and Evaluate One Social Psychological Explanation of Aggression

Describe and evaluate one social psychological explanation of aggression

Social Learning Theory (SLT) suggests that children learn aggressive behaviour by observing others acting aggressively. They also learn under what situations people are likely to be rewarded for their aggressive behaviour (this is known as vicarious reinforcement) or punished. As a result, they learn how to perform aggressive acts when appropriate (i.e. when rewards will follow), and will learn not to perform aggressive acts when they will be punished for it.

For social learning to take place, the child must form a mental representation of the behaviour as well as an expectancy of any future outcome of them performing that behaviour. If opportunities for aggressive behaviour arise in the future, the child may display that behaviour provided the expectation of reward is greater than the expectation of punishment.

If a child is rewarded for aggressive behaviour (e.g. by acquiring status or being praised by others), they are more likely to repeat this action in similar situations in the future. Children who are successful when using aggressive behaviour also develop self-efficacy: they will become more confident in their ability to use aggression to achieve what they desire.

SLT is supported by Bandura et al., who found that children who observed a model behaving aggressively towards a Bobo doll were more likely to reproduce the same behaviours when they were later allowed to interact with the doll; the children even improvised their own aggressive actions towards the doll. This was particularly the case when they saw the adult rewarded for their aggressive behaviour, thus supporting the claim that the expectation of reward influences the likelihood of a behaviour being performed.

However, this study lacks validity because the children may have been aware of what was expected of them, leading to them displaying demand characteristics when they were allowed to play with the doll. The...