Rosalind is an impulsive child who seldom waits for her turn when playing with other children. Rosalind’s father is also an impulsive individual who often seems to act before he thinks. The theorist who would MOST likely suggest that Rosalind has learned to be impulsive from watching her father is
a. B. F. Skinner.
b. Sigmund Freud.
c. Carl Rogers.
d. Albert Bandura.
The correct answer and explanation is :
The correct answer is:
d. Albert Bandura.
Explanation:
Albert Bandura is a psychologist best known for his social learning theory (also called observational learning or modeling). His theory suggests that individuals learn behaviors, attitudes, and emotional responses by observing others, particularly role models such as parents, teachers, or peers.
In Rosalind’s case, she exhibits impulsive behavior similar to her father’s. Bandura would argue that Rosalind has learned this behavior by watching and imitating her father’s impulsivity. This aligns with his famous Bobo doll experiment, where children who observed aggressive adult models were more likely to imitate aggressive behavior themselves.
Bandura’s theory emphasizes four key processes in observational learning:
- Attention – The child must first notice the model’s behavior. Since Rosalind lives with her father, she likely pays close attention to how he behaves.
- Retention – The child must remember the behavior. Rosalind likely recalls her father acting impulsively in various situations.
- Reproduction – The child must have the ability to imitate the behavior. Rosalind is capable of acting impulsively, just like her father.
- Motivation – The child needs a reason to imitate the behavior. If Rosalind sees her father’s impulsivity leading to quick rewards or little consequence, she is more likely to imitate it.
Other theorists do not fit as well:
- B. F. Skinner (a) focuses on reinforcement and punishment, not modeling.
- Sigmund Freud (b) emphasizes unconscious drives rather than learned behavior.
- Carl Rogers (c) focuses on self-concept and humanistic psychology, not observational learning.
Thus, Bandura’s theory best explains why Rosalind has learned impulsivity from her father.