Enjia Xiong
Mass Media Influence
American psychologist Albert Bandura is the leading architect of social cognitive theory. His early research program focused heavily on observational learning, which is learning that occurs through observing what others do. For example, how do people learn how to open the door? They learn it from the daily observation when they were kids.
Contemporary, according to Albert Bandura’s social cognitive theory, more and more news reports and social psychologist focus on how much influence mass media could impact people’s behavior. For example, people could always see some news report that, after watching too much violence shows, some young kids brought guns to school and shot those people who they don’t like. Some people blame that phenomena to the mass media influence. Many thoughtful adults are feared that violence, lawlessness, tawdry and explicit sex mass media could break down children’s moral values.
When young children watching these crazy violence shows on televisions, will that make these kids become more violence? I don’t think so. I think watching and doing is totally two different things.
When I was a kid, my favorite show was the Popeye the Sailor Man. I loved that show so much that I would sit in my room and watch it three hours per day. According to Albert Bandura’s social cognitive theory, I learn one important thing from the show, which is people will become super powerful after they eat spinach. Furthermore, after they become very powerful, they will be able to do all kinds of crazy things and defeat bad guys. According to Albert Bandura’s observational learning, I would become more likely to eat spinach and be more violent. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Personally I don’t like spinach. I hate the smelling or taste of the spinach. I would even throw up if I eat any spinach. After watching the Popeye, I thought I should try to eat some spinach and become stronger. However, biologically I stop myself to do that. So that I
American psychologist Albert Bandura is the leading architect of social cognitive theory. His early research program focused heavily on observational learning, which is learning that occurs through observing what others do. For example, how do people learn how to open the door? They learn it from the daily observation when they were kids.
Contemporary, according to Albert Bandura’s social cognitive theory, more and more news reports and social psychologist focus on how much influence mass media could impact people’s behavior. For example, people could always see some news report that, after watching too much violence shows, some young kids brought guns to school and shot those people who they don’t like. Some people blame that phenomena to the mass media influence. Many thoughtful adults are feared that violence, lawlessness, tawdry and explicit sex mass media could break down children’s moral values.
When young children watching these crazy violence shows on televisions, will that make these kids become more violence? I don’t think so. I think watching and doing is totally two different things.
When I was a kid, my favorite show was the Popeye the Sailor Man. I loved that show so much that I would sit in my room and watch it three hours per day. According to Albert Bandura’s social cognitive theory, I learn one important thing from the show, which is people will become super powerful after they eat spinach. Furthermore, after they become very powerful, they will be able to do all kinds of crazy things and defeat bad guys. According to Albert Bandura’s observational learning, I would become more likely to eat spinach and be more violent. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Personally I don’t like spinach. I hate the smelling or taste of the spinach. I would even throw up if I eat any spinach. After watching the Popeye, I thought I should try to eat some spinach and become stronger. However, biologically I stop myself to do that. So that I