The Social Learning Theory was introduced by Bandura in the 1960s, however, its roots come from behaviorism which can be traced to the 1800s. Bandura “posits that learning occurs in a social context with a dynamic and reciprocal interaction of the person, environment, and behavior” (Social Cognitive Theory). There is an emphasis on social influence and internal and external social reinforcement (SCT).

In 1986, Bandura authored Social Foundations of Thought and Action: A Social Cognitive Theory, which served as a landmark work on human thought, motivation, and action. In a book abstract, it was noted, “It deals with the prominent roles played by cognitive, vicarious, self-reflective, and self-regulatory processes in psychosocial functioning” (APA PsycNET). This book also holds cross-over appeal in other fields such as education, sociology, communications, political science, business, and law.

The Social Cognitive Theory not only accounts for how an individual may adopt and sustain a behavior, the environment in which an individual exhibits or performs a behavior, but also a person’s past experiences. Past experiences, it is believed, guide behavioral reinforcement and expectations for whether someone will employ a specific behavior, as well as why they may choose that behavior.

Bandura further promoted his idea of reciprocal determinism in this book, which focuses on the three factors that humans are influenced by:

- The person (themselves) such as biological, physical, genetic, and cognitive factors
- The environment – physical conditions, reinforcers, punishers, triggers, and models
- The behavior of the individual

Individuals are also defining internal concepts such as self-efficacy, which is the personal belief in one’s ability to do something. For example, if someone is encouraged over and over again to believe that they have what it takes to succeed, they will exert more effort.

Self-efficacy also comes from mastery of skill with the idea that past performance is a good indicator of future performance. Students often think in this manner when it comes to evaluating their academic studies. A student who may not feel they hold natural intellect in a subject such as math or science may base that feeling on their past academic performances in those subjects and predict their future performance as dismal.

Albert Bandura introduced the Social Learning Theory in the 1960s, which evolved into the Social Cognitive Theory. Cognition involves the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding. So this theory aims to take behaviorism (observable behaviors) and further its foundation by demonstrating how learning occurs in a social context - how people accept and maintain behaviors through social influence.

Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory: An Introduction (Davidson Films, Inc.).