Albert Bandura’s Behaviorism

Albert Bandura, often called a “‘father’ of the cognitivist movement” who is known mostly for his work on behaviorism, was born in Canada on December 4, 1925. He attended the University of British Columbia and received his bachelor’s degree in Psychology in 1949. He then attended the University of Iowa in 1952 where he got his PhD in Psychology. While teaching at Stanford University in 1959, he worked with a graduate student on his first book, Adolescent Aggression. Bandura is still currently doing research and studies at Stanford.

Bandura’s theory deals with behaviorism by influencing one variable. He would then test how it would affect the other. His theory basically states that a person’s surroundings and environment influences their behavior. Bandura thought that if a person’s surroundings can influence their behavior then their behavior can also influence their surroundings. He called this theory reciprocal determination. Simply stated, “The world and a person’s behavior cause each other.” Bandura then took this theory even further when he began looking at three interactions: the environment, a person’s psychological processes, and their behavior.

Bandura