Effects of co-observer's sanctions and adult presence on imitative aggression.

Abstract

The efects on film-mediated aggression of a co-observer's positive, negative, or nonsanctions and his subsequent presence or absence during performance opportunities were investigated. It was found that positive and negative sanctions produced corresponding disinhibition and inhibition effects only when the experimenter remained with the children during a postexposure test of imitative performance. The results seem related to social-learning theory in that the children's expectancies for receiving.various consequences appeared to determine the amount of imitation.