What is the Bobo doll experiment?

The Bobo doll experiment is a significant study in psychology that was designed to demonstrate how observational learning influences behavior, particularly aggression. Conducted by Albert Bandura in the early 1960s, the experiment involved children observing an adult interacting aggressively with an inflatable doll, known as the Bobo doll. The key finding was that children who witnessed the aggressive behavior were more likely to imitate that behavior when given the opportunity to interact with the doll themselves.

This experiment highlighted the concept of social learning theory, emphasizing that individuals can learn new behaviors simply by observing others, rather than through direct experience or reinforcement. The implications extend to understanding how aggression can be modeled and learned in real-world contexts, such as through media, and how this can impact children's behavior. The Bobo doll experiment remains a foundational study in understanding the ways in which observation and imitation can shape behavior, particularly in the context of aggression.