This week I’ve been thinking a lot about my participation in social learning activities – which is minimal at best. I want to participate more, but have yet to find the time! In any event, social learning is happening all the time, and it can be an easy way to learn from your peers.
What is social learning?
Traditionally, social learning emphasizes the fact that learning can be social, occurring through observation of behaviours. When I think about social learning, I think more about mobile or micro learning – why? Because social media has created a new venue for social learning. Just think of all of the Twitter chats that are occurring all over the place, or Reddit!
Drawing on the traditional definition, the modern definition might be defined as learning through social interactions where individuals can learn through their interactions in a collaborative and social environment. As in the traditional sense, individuals can learn desirable vs. undesirable behaviours based on reactions, and there is constant reciprocation.
Benefits and implications of social learning
To me, the benefits are obvious – we develop a means of engaging with individuals, socially, and through our interactions determine the ways in which we should (or should not) be engaging with individuals. However, social learning can be a double-edged sword. Just think of critical periods of development – teenagers make a great case study. In situations where individuals want to ‘fit in’ or feel popular, they may assume undesirable behaviours, mimicked after other individuals who are performing these behaviours (within the shared social sphere). Another example is the bystander effect – individuals don’t stop to help someone who appears to be in need of help, because they see others continually passing by, and assume that someone else will come to help.
So, social learning can certainly be a good thing, especially where micro learning is concerned, but it can also be a bad thing – as most things are capable of.
Resources
- Instructionaldesign.org’s explanation of Social Learning Theory
- Sense of Acceptance: Key Factor of Social Learning by H. Kawamichi, K. Yoshihara, R. Kitada, M. Matsunaga, A. Sasaki, Y. Yoshida, H. Takahashi, and N. Sadato
- Social Learning in a Human Society: An Experimental Study by M. Hamdi, G. Solman, A. Kingsotone, and V. Krishnamurthy
- The Role of Social Learning in Understanding Deviance by T. Rajasakran, S. Sinnappan, and S. S. Raja
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