Bandura ross and ross

Background:

• Influenced by other reesearch of kids learning through observing others
• Also interested in sex-appropriate behaviou and sex- appropriate reward

Aim:

• To see if children would immitate aggression role-played by an observed adult
• To see if sex of role model and child would be a factor
• As aggression seems to be related to male not female so were interested to see if gender effected aggression displayed.

Procedure:

• 36 girls, 36 boys. Aged between 37+69 months (3-6)
• Stanford university nursery
• Divided into 8 groups of 6 with a control group of 24 (did not observe a model)
• Four per group were exposed to aggressive role model, 4 non aggressive role model
• further divided into male and female who either observed male or female RM
• All were allocated to conditions, and rated on aggression by experimentor and teacher
• Female experimentor brought them into room and sat them at table to play w/toys
• RM came in and played w/bobo doll in opposite corner, sayed aggressive terms e.g POW for 10 mins then left
• Child taken to adjacent room w/non-aggressive toys and bobo doll for 20 mins
• behaviour observed and recorded
• recordings analysed at 5 second intervals
• Recorded physical, verbal, aggressive and non-aggressive behaviour
• also classified as imitative and non-imitative

Results:

• Children (either m or f) dislayed more aggressive behavious than control group or group w/ non aggressive role model, suggesting children imitate behaviou
• also displayed non-immitative aggressive showing they thought of new ways of aggression
• boys more likely to imitate same sex physical aggression than girls but girls more likely w/verbal aggression
• girls= teaset and dolls, boys= toy guns

Conclusion:

• Children learn through observation in absence of reinforcemnt, provided evidence for SLT
• children learn aggression from adult role model escpeially same sex

Strengths:

• able to control experiment and use standardised procedure therefor its reliable
• Children were matched in groups accoriding to their normal levels of aggression

Weaknesses:

• Could not predict long term effects as they deliberatly exposed children to aggression, not protecting participants therefor ethical issues
• Tested in unfamiliar enviornment and may have guessed researchers aims leading to demand characteristics