You are here

Observational Learning: Learning by Watching

23 September, 2015 - 16:10

The idea of latent learning suggests that animals, and people, may learn simply by experiencing or watching. Observational learning (modeling) islearning byobserving thebehavior of others. To demonstrate the importance of observational learning in children, Bandura, Ross, and Ross (1963) 1 showed children a live image of either a man or a woman interacting with a Bobo doll, a filmed version of the same events, or a cartoon version of the events. As you can see in Video Clip: Bandura Discussing Clips From His Modeling Studies the Bobo doll is an inflatable balloon with a weight in the bottom that makes it bob back up when you knock it down. In all three conditions, the model violently punched the clown, kicked the doll, sat on it, and hit it with a hammer.