Feist−Feist: Theories of
Personality, Seventh
EditionV. Learning Theories 16. Bandura: Social
Cognitive Theory(^512) © The McGraw−Hill
Companies, 2009
Concept of Humanity
Bandura sees humans as having the capacity to become many things, and most of
these things are learned through modeling. If human learning were dependent on
direct experience of trial and error, it would be exceedingly slow, tedious, and dan-
gerous. Fortunately, “humans have evolved an advanced cognitive capacity for ob-
servational learning that enables them to shape and structure their lives through
the power of modeling” (Bandura 2002a, p. 167).
Bandura believes that people are quite plastic and flexible, and that plastic-
ity and flexibility are the essence of humanity’s basic nature. Because humans have
evolved neurophysiological mechanisms for symbolizing their experiences, their na-
ture is marked by a large degree of flexibility. People have the capacity to store
past experiences and to use this information to chart future actions.
People’s capacity to use symbols provides them with a powerful tool for un-
derstanding and controlling their environment. It enables them to solve problems
without resorting to inefficient trial-and-error behavior, to imagine the conse-
quences of their actions, and to set goals for themselves.
Humans are goal-directed,purposive animals who can view the future and be-
stow it with meaning by being aware of the possible consequences of future behav-
ior. Humans anticipate the future and behave accordingly in the present. The future
does not determine behavior, but its cognitive representation can have a powerful
effect on present actions. “People set goals for themselves, anticipate the likely con-
sequences of prospective actions, and select and create courses of action likely to
produce desired outcomes and avoid detrimental ones” (Bandura, 2001, p. 7).
Although people are basically goal oriented, Bandura believes that they have
specific rather than general intentions and purposes. People are not motivated by
a single master goal such as striving for superiority or self-actualization but by a
multiplicity of goals, some distant and some proximate. These individual intentions,
however, are not ordinarily anarchical; they possess some stability and order. Cog-
nition gives people the capacity to evaluate probable consequences and to elimi-
nate behaviors that do not meet their standards of conduct. Personal standards,
therefore, tend to give human behavior a degree of consistency, even though that
behavior lacks a master motive to guide it.
Bandura’s concept of humanity is more optimisticthan pessimistic, because
it holds that people are capable of learning new behaviors throughout their lives.
However, dysfunctional behaviors may persist because of low self-efficacy or be-
cause they are perceived as being reinforced. Nevertheless, these unhealthy be-
haviors need not continue, because most people have the capacity to change by
imitating the productive behaviors of others and by using their cognitive abilities
to solve problems.
506 Part V Learning Theories
The final criterion of a useful theory is parsimony. Again, Bandura’s theory
meets high standards. The theory is simple, straightforward, and unencumbered by
hypothetical or fanciful explanations.