One 2002 survey ranked him as the fourth most eminent psychologist of the last century, behind onlyB.F.
Skinner,Sigmund Freud, andJean Piaget.
Bandura’s early experiences and observations contributed to his later emphasis on the importance of personal agency.
Jon Brenneis / Getty Images
He had started out as a biological sciences major and his interest in psychology formed by accident.
Bandura explained, “One morning, I was wasting time in the library.
I noticed a course in psychology that would serve as an excellent filler.
It sparked my interest and I found my career.”
While the program took an interest in social learning theory, Bandura felt that it was too focused onbehavioristexplanations.
Bandura earned his MA degree in 1951 and his PhD inclinical psychologyin 1952.
He began working at Stanford in 1953 and continued to work at the university until his retirement.
During his adolescent aggression studies, Bandura became increasingly interested in vicarious learning, modeling, and imitation.
Albert Bandura’ssocial learning theorystressed the importance of observational learning, imitation, and modeling.
There are three key concepts in Bandura’s theory.
His theory ofreciprocal determinismintegrated a continuous interaction between behaviors, cognitions, and the environment.
The film was then shown to a group of children.
Afterward, the children were allowed to play in a room with a Bobo doll.
Bandura’s work emphasizes the importance of social influences and a belief in personal control.
Was Albert Bandura a Behaviorist?
Even in his earliest work, Bandura argued that reducing behavior to a stimulus-response cycle was too simplistic.
Until his death in 2021, Bandura held the title of the most widely cited living psychologist.
The article also became an instant classic in psychology.
His theories had a tremendous impact onpersonality psychology,cognitive psychology, education, andpsychotherapy.
In 1974, Bandura was elected president of theAmerican Psychological Association.
Bandura is often identified as one of the most influential psychologists of all time.
In 2014, he was awarded the National Medal of Science by President Barack Obama.
National Science Foundation.The President’s National Medal of Science: Recipient Details.
Stanford University.Stanford psychology professor Albert Bandura has died.
M. G. Lindzey & W. M. Runyan (Eds.
),A History of Psychology in Autobiography (Vol.
Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association; 2006.
Lawson, RB, Graham, JE, & Baker, KM.A History of Psychology.
New York: Routledge; 2015.
