KIDS, TV, AND ROLE MODELS:WHAT’S THE CONNECTION?

A RESEARCH STUDY BASED ON ALBERT BANDURA’S

By

Mary Kate

Urban

and Liz Lowery

SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY

Albert Bandura

• Born December 4, 1925 in Alberta, Canada

• Psychology professor at Stanford since 1953

• Environmentalist

• Children’s minds are structured by the

models and social training practices

provided by environment

• Nature ---------------------------------------------

Nurture

• Major contribution to psychology:

Social Learning Theory

In social situations, people learn

simply by observing others’

behavior.

Bandura

Social Learning Theory

• Observational learning is powerful!

• No-trial learning : acquiring new behavior all at once,

entirely through observation

• Vicarious reinforcement : noting what happens when others

try a new behavior, we formulate expectations about

outcomes without our own direct action

• Learning appears to be cognitive

• Models : who we learn by

• Many different kinds

• Live

• Symbolic (TV, books, verbal instruction)

4 Components of Social Learning

1. Attentional Processes• No imitation without attention • Models attract our attention by their appeal or by our needs /

interests

2. Retention Processes• To imitate a model after observation, we must remember

them in symbolic form

3. Motor Reproduction Processes• Accurate reproduction of behavior requires necessary motor

skills• Comes with physical growth and practice

4. Reinforcement and Motivational Processes• Difference between acquisition and performance• Performance is governed by reinforcement (direct or

vicarious)

Our Research Study Framework

• Bandura claims that “models often attract our attention because they are distinctive, or because they possess the trappings of success, prestige, power and other winsome qualities” (Crain, 199)

• Televised modeling is “so effective in capturing attention that viewers learn much of what they see without requiring any special incentives to do so” (Bandura, 25)

• In 1977, Bandura predicted that with the “increasing use of symbolic modeling, parents, teachers, and other traditional role models may occupy less prominent roles in social learning” (Bandura, 39)

• There seems then to be a possible connection between how much television children are exposed to and who they identify with as their models

“The increase in consumption is in part the result of more programming targeted at kids…including video on demand, which is particularly popular among young children who like to watch their

favorite shows over and over again.”

“ ‘The biggest misconception is that it's harmless entertainment,’ said Strasburger, who has written extensively about the effects of

media on children. ‘Media are one of the most powerful teachers of children that we know of.’ “

October 2009

Kids watch more than a day of TV each week.

The latest figures from Nielsen have children's TV usage at an eight-year high. Children's health advocates warn of adverse effects.

Our Investigation

• In the advent of the twenty first century, when children are exposed to more and more hours of television every day, what models are they identifying with?

• Is there an association between the amount of television watched by children and their choice of model to imitate?

Critical Questions

• Who influences 8-10 year old children? Who are their role-models?

• Is there an association between the amount of TV watched and influential

models?

• Is there a prevalence of television models chosen over parental/real life

models?

• What aspects of the model do children identify as influential?

Hypothesis

• Children who watch a high amount of TV will choose media role

models more often than those who watch a moderate or low

amount of TV

• Traditional models will be chosen less often due to the influx of

attractive television models.

• In light of Bandura’s statement about the allure of models based

on their “power, prestige, etc” the children who choose television

models are more likely to choose them due to their external rather

than their internal qualities.

Testing the Subjects

School: Lee Elementary, Irving

Grade: 4th , GT

Sample size: 15 students

Procedure:

• Students with signed permission slips were allowed to participate

• The tests were taken anonymously among the 15 students• Students took about 15 minutes to complete the

questionnaires

Data Collection Instrument

 

 

1. Who do you want to be like? Circle one of the people below. 2. Why did you choose this person?

3. How many TV shows do you watch?

4. Do you watch TV every day?

5. When do you watch TV? a. After school b. In the evenings c. Weekends d. All of the above

6. What show(s) do you watch every day?

7. What is your favorite show(s)? 8. Who is your favorite TV character?

Mom

Dad

Sibling

Teacher

Friend

Grandma

Grandpa

Other

Barack Obama

David Beckham

Michael Jordan

Justin Bieber

Michelle Obama

Shakira

Miley Cyrus

Lady Gaga

Spiderman

Shrek

Sponge Bob

Tinker Bell

Superman

Superwoman

Kim Possible

Hannah Montana

Rubric for Questions 3 - 8

HIGH MODERATE LOW

3. How many TV shows do you

watch?

More than 5 3-4 0-2

4. Do you watch TV every day?

yes Yes no

5. When do you watch TV?

d. All of the above

a. After school

b. In the evenings

c. Weekends

none

6. What show(s) do you watch every

day?

More than 5 specific

3-4 specific 0-2 specific

7. What is your favorite show(s)?

More than 5 specific

3-4 specific 0-2 specific

8. Who is your favorite TV character?

More than 3 2 0-1

Rubric for Question 2

External/

Real Life

Internal/

Real Life

External/

Real Media

Internal/

Real Media

External/

Fictional

Internal/

Fictional

TV

HIGH

TV

MODERATE

TV

LOW

External Qualities• Physical appearance• Wealth• Status

Internal Qualities • Personal accomplishment• Leadership• Happiness/fulfillment

Summative Rubric

Real-Life Model

Real-Life Media Model

Fictional Model

Other

TVHIGH

-Real life-Real life media

-Fictional

TVMODERAT

E

-Real life-Real life media

-Fictional

TVLOW

-Real life-Real life media

-Fictional

The Results

Real-Life Model Real-Life Media Model

TVHIGH

TVMODERA

TE

TVLOW

At a glance…•O

nly 1/15 had low TV exposure

•9/15 chose media-based models

•7/15 had high TV exposure

•Of those, 5 chose media based models

1/15chose mom

1/15 chose dad

2/15chose teachers

2/15chose friends

Who are the real life role models?

Mom

Dad

Friend

Teacher

Who are the media based role models?

Selena

Selena Gomez

Shakira

Michael Jackson

Justin Bieber

Sponge Bob

4/15 chose Justin Bieber

5/15chose evenly

between Selena, Selena Gomez,

Shakira, Michael Jackson, and Spongebob

TV Exposure & Model Choice

High TV Moderate TV Low TV0

1

2

3

4

5

6

Real Life ModelMedia Based Model

Model Choice for High TV

HIGH TV0

1

2

3

4

5

6

Real Life ModelMedia Model

Of thosewho had HIGH TV exposure….

70% chose a

Media- Based model

Moderate - Low TV0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

Real Life ModelMedia Model

Model Choice for Moderate – Low TV

Of those who had MODERATE – LOW TV exposure…

50% chose a Media-Based model

50% chose a Real-Life model

On What Basis? External vs. Internal

Real Life Model Media Based Model

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

External QualityInternal Quality

What they said…

EXTERNAL Justin Bieber

“Because one day I wish to be a really famous person.”

Shakira “Because she is famous, I like her song and I

like her muves and some people sing her songs the most.”

Selena Gomez “I choose this person because she kind of looks

like me. She has some tv shows she is in. She is pritty.”

What they said…

INTERNAL Justin Bieber

“Cause I think he doesn’t get into a lot of trouble and he is telling kids never say never cuase you can always do it and you wont sceed if you don’t try. I think he’s a good role model for me and for kids.”

Friend “Cause she is nice, generous, and cool.”

Dad “Because I was named after him, I look like him,

and I like being like him.”

Our hypothesis

…was correct!

• Children who watch a high amount of TV chose media role

models more often than those who watch a moderate or low

amount of TV

• Parental models were chosen less often

• Children who chose television models chose them due to

their external rather than internal qualities

Limitations

Limited amount of subjects Accuracy of questionnaire Accuracy of rubrics

If we did it again…

More subjects Consider gender Consider race More carefully worded questionnaire More carefully worded rubrics Hourly TV exposure

Generated Questions

How would results from a faith-based school sample differ from a public school sample? What about homeschoolers?

Is there an association between ethnicity, role model choice, and TV exposure?

What is the association between the subject’s gender and the gender of his/her role model?

Conclusion: Bandura’s got the right idea!

TELEVISED MODELING IS POWERFUL! 70% of our subjects chose media

Implications Media especially have responsibility Parents have responsibility

Parents should ask themselves, “What qualities do I want my children to imitate?”

Bibliography

Bandura, Albert. Social Learning Theory. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1977

Crain, William. “Bandura’s Social Learning Theory.” Theories of Development. Upper Saddle River: Prentice, 2000. 193-212.

Gold, Matea. “Kids watch more than a day of TV each week.” Los Angeles Time Article Collections. Web. 18 February 2011. Los Angeles: Los Angeles Times, 2009.

Questions?