500 Part VI Learning-Cognitive Theories
monitor ourselves with the question “What am I doing?” Finally, we evaluate our
performance by asking, “Am I doing this right?” This last question is not always
easy to answer, especially if it pertains to a motor skill, such as ballet dancing or
platform diving, in which we cannot actually see ourselves. For this reason, some
athletes use video cameras to help them acquire or improve their motor skills.Motivation Observational learning is most effective when learners are motivated
to perform the modeled behavior. Attention and representation can lead to the
acquisition of learning, but performance is facilitated by motivation to enact that
particular behavior. Even though observation of others may teach us how to do
something, we may have no desire to perform the necessary action. One person
can watch another use a power saw or run a vacuum cleaner and not be motivated
to try either activity. Most sidewalk superintendents have no wish to emulate the
observed construction worker.Enactive Learning
Every response a person makes is followed by some consequence. Some of these
consequences are satisfying, some are dissatisfying, and others are simply not
cognitively attended and hence have little effect. Bandura believes that complex
human behavior can be learned when people think about and evaluate the conse-
quences of their behaviors.
The consequences of a response serve at least three functions. First, response
consequences inform us of the effects of our actions. We can retain this informa-
tion and use it as a guide for future actions. Second, the consequences of our
responses motivate our anticipatory behavior; that is, we are capable of symboli-
cally representing future outcomes and acting accordingly. We not only possess
insight but also are capable of foresight. We do not have to suffer the discomfort
of cold temperatures before deciding to wear a coat when going outside in freezing
weather. Instead, we anticipate the effects of cold, wet weather and dress accord-
ingly. Third, the consequences of responses serve to reinforce behavior, a function
that has been firmly documented by Skinner (Chapter 16) and other reinforcement
theorists. Bandura (1986), however, contends that, although reinforcement may at
times be unconscious and automatic, complex behavioral patterns are greatly facil-
itated by cognitive intervention. He maintained that learning occurs much more
efficiently when the learner is cognitively involved in the learning situation and
understands what behaviors precede successful responses.
In summary, Bandura believes that new behaviors are acquired through two
major kinds of learning: observational learning and enactive learning. The core
element of observational learning is modeling, which is facilitated by observing
appropriate activities, properly coding these events for representation in memory,
actually performing the behavior, and being sufficiently motivated. Enactive learn-
ing allows people to acquire new patterns of complex behavior through direct
experience by thinking about and evaluating the consequences of their behaviors.
The learning process allows people to have some degree of control over the events
that shape the course of their lives. Control, however, rests with a three-way recip-
rocal interaction of person variables, behavior, and environment.