Role of affective assessment in modeling aggressive behavior. 1982

B D Slife, and J F Rychlak

This study examines the role of affective assessment, a self-generated influence in learning acquisition, in Bandura's original modeling-of-aggression procedure. Thirty-two first- and second-grade children (both sexes) rated toys and televised acts of aggression against an inflated doll according to their personal affective preference. A matched control group of 32 children was yoked to the affective preferences of the experimental subjects. Control subjects were not shown the televised aggression. All children were then introduced to a free-play situation in which toys and an inflated doll were present. In line with Bandura's findings, we predicted that observational learning would be demonstrated across experimental and control conditions. However, in line with the tenets and previous research findings in support of logical learning theory, we predicted that children would model affectively preferred aggressive acts and toys more readily than affectively dispreferred acts and toys. The experimental predictions were supported in the data collection. Boys and girls differed significantly only in their imitation of positively rated aggressive actions and not in their imitation of negatively rated aggressive actions. The broader theoretical implications of these results, as well as the ramifications of these findings for the televised violence and aggression issue, are discussed.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007100 Imitative Behavior The mimicking of the behavior of one individual by another. Behavior, Imitative,Behaviors, Imitative,Imitative Behaviors
D007600 Judgment The process of discovering or asserting an objective or intrinsic relation between two objects or concepts; a faculty or power that enables a person to make judgments; the process of bringing to light and asserting the implicit meaning of a concept; a critical evaluation of a person or situation. Judgement,Judgements,Judgments
D007858 Learning Relatively permanent change in behavior that is the result of past experience or practice. The concept includes the acquisition of knowledge. Phenomenography
D008297 Male Males
D010988 Play and Playthings Spontaneous or voluntary recreational activities pursued for enjoyment and accessories or equipment used in the activities; includes games, toys, etc. Puppets,Toys,Play,Playthings,Plays,Plaything,Playthings and Play,Puppet,Toy
D002648 Child A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL. Children
D005260 Female Females
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000339 Affect The feeling-tone accompaniment of an idea or mental representation. It is the most direct psychic derivative of instinct and the psychic representative of the various bodily changes by means of which instincts manifest themselves. Mood,Affects,Moods
D000374 Aggression Behavior which may be manifested by destructive and attacking action which is verbal or physical, by covert attitudes of hostility or by obstructionism. Aggressions

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