Learning theory - Evaluation

Learning theory - Evaluation

1. There is lots of research that shows that children can learn behaviour through observation and that their willingness to imitate these behaviours is affected by the observed consequences of a model's actions.

2. However, there is a substantial difference between children hitting a bobo doll in a laboratory and people committing criminal offences in the real world.

3. Social learning theorists have largely neglected naturalistic research meaning we should be cautious about assuming that the processes demonstrated in the lab, apply in the same way outside it.

4. Social learning theory has little to say about the conditions under which violence and criminality are learned.

5. It doesn't look at the role of cognition in criminal behaviour.

6. Social learning theory doesn't explain why people behave criminally when the vast amount of models and reinforcements promote non-criminal behaviour and prison acts as a punishment.