A Congressional hearing is taking place in Washington, DC. The representatives are discussing whether the portrayals of violence on children's TV shows are perhaps contributing to the violence we see in schools today. The work of what psychologist is most relevant to their discussions?
A) Bandura
B) Tolman
C) Skinner
D) Pavlov

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Bandura's social learning theory emphasizes the role of observational learning in shaping behavior. His research on the Bobo doll experiment showed that children who observed aggressive behavior were more likely to imitate that behavior themselves. Therefore, his work is the most relevant to the debate over whether violent TV shows may be contributing to violent behavior in children. Tolman's research was focused on cognitive maps and learning in rats, while Skinner and Pavlov are associated with classical and operant conditioning, respectively, which are not as directly related to this topic.

A Congressional Hearing Is Taking Place in Washington, DC