Social Cognitive Theory

Social Cognitive Theory was developed by Albert Bandura, he took SCT from his Social Learning Theory. Bandura saw the flaws in his Social Learning Theory and redeveloped it to include four levels of development that can be used in school settings as well as at home within the family. SCT uses the environment and the models (parents, tv, teachers, and social media) to explain how children develop into who they become and explain their behaviors.

In “Applying Social Cognitive Theory in the Development of Self-Regulated Competencies Throughout K-12 Grades K-12” maps out how to use Social Cognitive Theory in each grade level. The chapter that talks about this subject breaks down the roles that teachers and children play in the everyday. Children observe and imitate the people around them and who they see on television, the videos they see on social media, and the behaviors of their peers. The four steps that Bandura lays out is Attention-in order for behavior to be imitated it must first grab our attention. Retention-in order to imitate a behavior, it must be remembered *Social Learning is not immediate. Reproduction-the ability to perform the behavior. We are limited by our physical behavior so we may not be able to perform the desired behavior. Lastly, motivation-the observer will choose to imitate the behavior based on the outcome (if it is positive or negative) (McLeod, 2016 ).

Each stage is very important in understanding the behaviors during each stage of development. Identification and imitation are vital to development but mean different things. Identification means that the behaviors that are observed by children come from many different sources and based on the outcome children can decide that they want to be more like the person(s) they see and start practicing being like them to form their identity. Imitation is when a child observes a specific behavior and then tries to imitate it. Identity and imitating can manifest in different ways. Depending on what the child picks up on can look like disruptive behaviors or can help the child grow and become a contributing citizen of society. Teachers play a big role in a child’s life and is one of the biggest models they will have of how to act, how to learn, what expectations to have from those around them.

Teachers have a tough job when it comes to being the model in a child’s life. They have the responsibility of setting expectations, helping children set and achieve goals, guide them in how to achieve those goals, and doing all of that for 20-30 kids in their classrooms. Children pull their identity from many different places, but their biggest influences are their teachers and their parents.

The reason that this topic is so important to me is because I see this on a regular basis. Teachers are always asking how to help a specific kid or what they can do to help a kid that is continually struggling with schoolwork. I also continue to see parents that struggle with how to handle situations with their children, from helping them with homework, to bedtime routines, to just not knowing how to communicate with their children which can lead to barriers between family members. I want to use Social Cognitive Theory to help teachers and families know how to reach their goals and help their children reach theirs.

I work with students that have severe negative behaviors that come out in school and at home. In my observations these behaviors are due to students not having the correct terminology or tools to correctly express how they are feeling. Using Social Cognitive Theory as a guide I believe that I can equip these students with the help of the teachers and parents with the tools and coaching on how to handle their bodies, give them terminology to use to correctly express their needs and ask for the help they need and in turn cut down on the behavior out bursts. This in turn will change how other children and adults view the child in question, give the child more confidence and this will lead to the child being and feeling more successful at school and at home.

I agree that environment and how we perceive our surroundings impacts what we do, how we act, who we hangout with, what others think of us and we learn a lot about who we want to be and who we are. Understanding this side of a child can help with knowing how to help the child. Have there been any changes at home, what does their schoolwork look like, what do they watch on television, see on social media, observe their parents and older siblings doing.