social cognitive theory

Examples of social cognitive theory in the following topics:

• Criticisms of the Social-Cognitive Pespective on Personality

  • Critics of the social-cognitive theory of personality argue that it is not a unified theory and does not explain development over time.
  • The social-cognitive theory of personality emphasizes both learning and cognition as sources of individual differences in personality.
  • One of the main criticisms of the social-cognitive theory is that it is not a unified theory.
  • Because of this, it can be difficult to quantify the effect that social cognition has on development.
  • Critics of social-cognitive theory argue that the theory does not provide a full explanation of how social cognition, behavior, environment, and personality are related (known as "reciprocal determinism").

• What is Social Constructivism?

  • Social constructivism emphasizes the importance of culture and context in understanding what occurs in society and constructing knowledge based on this understanding (Derry, 1999; McMahon, 1997).
  • This perspective is closely associated with many contemporary theories, most notably the developmental theories of Vygotsky and Bruner, and Bandura's social cognitive theory (Shunk, 2000).

• Bandura's and Rotter's Social-Cognitive Theories of Personality

  • Bandura's and Rotter's social-cognitive theories of personality emphasize cognitive processes, such as thinking and judging.
  • Social-cognitive theories of personality emphasize the role of cognitive processes, such as thinking and judging, in the development of personality.
  • Social cognition is basically social thought, or how the mind processes social information; social-cognitive theory describes how individuals think and react in social situations.
  • Two major figures in social cognitive-theory are behaviorist Albert Bandura and clinical psychologist Julian Rotter.
  • Albert Bandura is a behavioral psychologist credited with creating social learning theory.

• Vygotsky's Theories

  • The work of Lev Vygotsky and other developmental psychologists has become the foundation of much research and theory in developmental cognition over the past several decades, particularly of what has become known as social development theory.
  • Vygotsky's theories stress the fundamental role of social interaction in the development of cognition (Vygotsky, 1978; Wertsch, 1985), as he believed strongly that community plays a central role in the process of "making meaning."
  • In other words, social learning tends to precede development.

• Theories of Attitude Formation and Change

  • Social judgment theories emphasize the role of prior attitudes in shaping attitude formation and change.
  • Social learning theory focuses on the development of cognitions related to the expected outcome of behavior.
  • Social learning theories of attitude change are closely related to theories that emphasize the role of social learning in cognitive development.
  • See the chapters on Social Constructivism and Cognitive Apprenticeship, for example, for discussions of the importance of the social context for cognitive development.
  • Social learning theory also shares cognitive apprenticeship's emphasis on modeling as a way of sharing knowledge.

• Social Cognition

  • Social cognition, like general cognition, uses schemas to help people form judgments and conclusions about the world.
  • Similarly, a notable theory of social cognition is social-schema theory.
  • This theory suggests that we have mental representations for specific social situations.
  • In social cognition, salience is the degree to which a particular social object stands out relative to other social objects in a situation.
  • Social psychologists have become increasingly interested in the influence of culture on social cognition.

• A Revisionist Theory of Conceptual Change: A Holistic View

  • In particular, the notion of conceptual ecology was criticized because it focuses solely on the learner's cognition and not on the learner as a whole.
  • Strike and Posner (1992) also recognized similar deficiencies in their original conceptual change theory and suggested that affective and social issues affect conceptual change.
  • Social constructivist and cognitive apprenticeship perspectives have also influenced conceptual change theory (Hewson, Beeth, & Thorley, 1998).
  • Thus, conceptual change is no longer viewed as being influenced solely by cognitive factors.
  • Affective, social, and contextual factors also contribute to conceptual change.

• Theoretical Perspectives on Childhood Socialization

  • Theories of childhood socialization and development study the elements of the cognitive and social development that occur in childhood.
  • The main theories that psychologists and social scientists rely on today were developed in the twentieth century and beyond.
  • These theories seek to understand why childhood is a unique period in one's life and the elements of the cognitive and social development that occur in childhood.
  • One of the most widely applied theories of childhood is Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development.
  • This video explains Piaget's theory of cognitive development and includes footage of the type of experiments Piaget performed to develop his theory.

• Cognitive Development in Adolescence

  • In adolescence, changes in the brain interact with experience, knowledge, and social demands and produce rapid cognitive growth.
  • Biological changes in brain structure and connectivity in the brain interact with increased experience, knowledge, and changing social demands to produce rapid cognitive growth.
  • The constructivist perspective, based on the work of Piaget, takes a quantitative, state-theory approach.
  • Metacognition is relevant in social cognition and results in increased introspection, self-consciousness, and intellectualization.
  • Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development includes four stages: sensorimotor, pre-operational, concrete operational, and formal operational.

• Cognitive Psychology

  • Much of the work derived from cognitive psychology has been integrated into various other modern disciplines of psychological study, including social psychology, personality psychology, abnormal psychology, developmental psychology, educational psychology, and behavioral economics.
  • Cognitive theory contends that solutions to problems take the form of algorithms, heuristics, or insights.
  • In 1958, Donald Broadbent integrated concepts from human-performance research and the recently developed information theory in his book Perception and Communication, which paved the way for the information-processing model of cognition.
  • He is most widely known for his stage theory of cognitive development, which outlines how children become able to think logically and scientifically over time.
  • Piaget is best known for his stage theory of cognitive development.