Social Cognitive Theory

Key Concepts of
Bandura’s Social
Cognitive Theory
Triadic Reciprocal
Causation
Core Intentionality Foresight
Features
of
Human Self- Self-

Agency
reactiveness reflectiveness
Self-system
• Self-efficacy
• Self-regulation
Self-Efficacy
Four Sources
1. Mastery experiences
2. Social modelling
3. Social persuasion
4. Physical and emotional
states
Proxy Agency
• Bandura (2001) noted that “no
one has the time, energy, and
resources to master every realm
of everyday life. Successful
functioning necessarily involves a
blend of reliance on proxy agency
in some areas of functioning”
 Collective Efficacy
Two techniques for measuring
collective efficacy.

01 02
combine individual measure the
members’ confidence each
evaluations of their person has in the
capabilities to enact group’s ability to
behaviors that bring about a
benefit the group. desired outcome.
Collective Efficacy
Four Factors that lower collective efficacy

1. Humans live in a transnational world

2. Recent technology that people neither
understand nor believe that they can
control may lower their sense of collective
efficacy.
3. Complex social machinery, with layers of
bureaucracy that prevent social change.
4. Tremendous scope and magnitude of
human problems can undermine
collective efficacy.
Self-Regulation

• Internal factors
• Self-observation
• Evaluating performance
• Self-reaction
• External Factors
• Standards of evaluation
• External Reinforcement
Self-Regulation

Internalized self-sanctions
• Selective activation
• Disengagement
• Redefining behavior
• Distort the relationship
between behavior and its
injurious consequences
• Displacing responsibility
 Observational Learning Enactive Learning
Processes Governing The consequences of a
Observational Learning response serve three
function:
Learning 1. Attention
1. Inform us of the
2. Representation
effects of our actions
3. Behavioral production
2. Motivate our
4. Motivation anticipatory behavior
3. Reinforce behavior
Dysfunctional
Behavior
• Depression
• Phobias
• Aggressive behavior
Therapy
Bandura noted three levels of
treatment:
1. Induction of change
2. Generalization of change to
other appropriate situations,
and
3. Maintenance of newly
acquired functional behaviors.
Concept of Humanity
Bandura sees humans as being relatively fluid and flexible. People
can store past experiences and then use this information to chart
future actions. Bandura's theory rates near the on teleology versus
causality and high on free choice, optimism, conscious influences,
and uniqueness. As a social cognitive theory, it rates very high on
social determinants of personality.
“People’s beliefs about their
abilities have a profound
effect on those abilities”
-Albert Bandura