Nature Vs Nurture
I support Bandura argument that behavior is learned through observation. It is imperative to acknowledge the fact that people from a young age can only learning through observing what the adults are doing and, in the event, adopt a particular method of doing things through imitating what they see. The children are exposed to many models in society from where they learn through observation and imitation. Such models include teachers, parents, TV, peers, and teachers among others. These models go a long way to offer a platform from which children can learn and emulate behavior at different stages in their life. The argument supports the reason why a boy born to a violent father tends to be violent when he grows up while the girl of the same family will tend to accept violence as normal (Nolen, 2018). Further, exposing children to a violent movie will tend to increase their aggression appetite since that what they will grow knowing as good.
In any case, the aspect of children imitating what they observe makes girls and boys who they are in the sense that, boys will tend to develop masculine behaviors while girls develop feminine characteristics. The boys will imitate any male figure close to them whom they see as a role model while the girls will tend to imitate the female figure close to them. The models will always shape their subjects through punishment and rewards and in the event, allow them to internalize what they see as the right or wrong thing. For example, if a parent watches a girl carry a doll in her back and says, “what a caring girl you are?” it is likely that the girl would repeat the act in future since such comments from the parent are rewarding and as such they will reinforce such act (Mcleod, 2016). It is worth noting that the aspect of reinforcement takes shape through internal or external space and bears the greatest impact when it marches the individual’s needs. Therefore, children learn from what they observe older people and imitate their actions.
The BObo experiment justifies how children learn aggression behavior in society. The adult people in society act in a way that attracts the attention of children and the children respond to such behaviors and retains the same for future reference. Owing to the fact that children internalize what they see as the right thing to do, they emulate the same and feel motivated to practice. The situation becomes more pronounced if the children like the adult person who repeatedly acts aggressively. Further, if the children face no deterrence to avoid the behavior it becomes normal throughout their life (Cherry, 2017). The behavior of children in any society is subject to what they see older members of society do and such acts become strong in their lives if they receive positive confirmation that what they are doing is the right thing, and the vice versa is true.
There are fundamental flaws in the Bobo experiment omits. The experiment exposes the children to aggressive behavior for a very short and as such the results of their actions can be taken as subjective. The concept of learning through observation in any society takes shape through a consistency process as opposed to one day act.
The aspect of children learning predominantly through imitation in society will have implication in the sense that, they may be subject to behaviors that are not necessarily beneficial in their life. For instance, the aspect of boys learning to be masculine and girls feminine will tend to assign them gender roles. Such roles have a negative impact since they limit the girls and boys from venturing into particular activities terming them as belonging to the other gender. The approach will tend to limit the opportunities available for girls in society since they restrict them from venturing in some economic careers or activities that are deemed masculine.