Definition
Albert Bandura (1925–2021) was a Canadian-American psychologist whose social learning theory holds that people learn not only through direct experience and reinforcement, but also by observing others and modeling their behavior. He emphasized the role of cognitive processes — attention, memory, and motivation — in shaping how observed behaviors are adopted, and he introduced the concept of self-efficacy, the learner's belief in their own ability to succeed at a task.
Plain English
A psychologist whose work showed that people learn a lot by watching others, not just by doing things themselves. He also showed that a learner's belief in their own ability to succeed strongly affects how well they actually learn.
Context Anchor
Seen in the Aviation Instructor’s Handbook during discussion of how people learn, especially learning by observation and example.
Why Pilots Care
Bandura's ideas explain why an instructor's demonstration matters so much in flight training, and why a student's confidence — built up through achievable challenges — directly affects how well they perform in the cockpit.
Example Sentence 1
Drawing on Albert Bandura's social learning theory, the instructor demonstrated each maneuver before asking the student to attempt it.
Example Sentence 2
Albert Bandura’s ideas remind instructors that students often copy what they see rather than what they are only told.