The Dark Side of Science: The Bobo Doll Experiment 1963 (Short Documentary)

#Videogame #History #Science

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The Bobo doll experiment is the name for a series of experiments performed by psychologist Albert Bandura to test his social learning theory.

Between 1961 and 1963, he studied the behaviour of children after they watched an adult model act aggressively towards a Bobo the clown doll.

The most famous version of the experiment measured the children's behaviour after seeing an adult model rewarded, punished, or experience no consequence for physically attacking the Bobo doll.

The results of the experiment would be used as the justification of the anti video game movement of the 1980 and 1990s.

The study was considered controversial but not as bad as the Baby Albert study.

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[GoatTheGoat]

Such an obviously flawed study. The whole point of the Bobo toy is to punch it. The fact that the experimental subjects did so, is not a sign of learned aggression. It is a sign of learned, "playing with a toy as it was designed to be played with."

[SM-zwon]

This toy was designed to be hit. When hit, it comes back after going down. That in it self is fascinating enough for anyone to keep doing that. In my opinion, it’s not aggression. They are just playing.

[holloweyes]

The way I see it is some scientists left some kids in a room with a toy that is made for being beat up and thought it was weird when the kids started beating it up. What else did they expect

[bibitch]

They were basically telling the kids, "This is how you're supposed to play with this toy" and the kids went, "Okay".

[herculean]

Imagine playing Minecraft and then suddenly getting the urge to build a house IRL.

[lilithwills]

"These children are obviously aggressive because they hit a toy that was literally designed to be hit."

[gwendolynstata]

"We put kids in the same room as a terrifying hell clown toy and the kids started beating on it, our top researchers are STILL trying to figure it out"

[MercurialSaturnian]

Honestly, the bobo doll just took all those kids stress and anger in a fairly healthy manner. It might actually be good to have one for my kids so im thinking of getting one or something similar now lol

[JoanWhack]

Can we also take into consideration that the Bobo doll is a toy and doesn't in any way indicate if children would behave the same way to a living, breathing, being? Kids can tell the difference between what is able to go "ow", and what isn't.

[XeresKyle]

*1960's be like:* Media and adult aggression may lead to children imitating the aggression.

*Also 1960's:* Has the most realistic toy guns I've ever seen.

[cremetangerine]

I had two degrees in psychology, but *some* of the fundamental cases or experiments were just unethical torture (the Stanford “prison” experiment) and/or incorrect reporting (the Kitty Genovese murder as an example for “the bystander effect“).

[yaboisaamik]

I like the duality of "playing violent video games and seeing violent media is turning our children violent" while simultaneously showing increasingly graphic and horrific things on the news

[ssharkbait]

I’m a full grown adult who is literally afraid of confrontation, but I would 100 percent swing on Bobo without hesitation. I think the kids are just fine.

[amberbante]

Crazy thing is when Columbine happened there were a lot of people feeling sorry for the perpetrators saying that they were "brainwashed by violent media" and bullied into their killing spree. I remember around that time there was a twelve year old boy sentenced to prison for killing his dad after he caught the guy raping his sister. When it came to this child, who endured abuse and was trying to protect his siblings, people said "abuse is not an excuse!" for killing his dad.

[fratercontenduntocculta]

I still remember the moral outrage over violent games. I was also young enough to be questioned by a school psychologist due to being a fan of military and fighting games. It wasn't until last year that I learned the ESRB was created by the industry itself to save its own butt. Norm over at video game historian has a thorough documentary on its creation if you're interested.

[mayanightstar]

What we actually learned from this study:
"When kids are intentionally made frustrated and then exposed to a toy designed to be punched that they saw an adult model punch, they will punch it"

Edit: oh wow thanks for all the likes and hilariously sarcastic replies

[pizzamafioso]

Scientists in the 60s:
"Here is a toy hammer and a puppet ment to be punched"
Kid:*uses hammer against puppet*
Scientist 'surprised Pikachu face'

[shadowflamegaming]

Another interesting factor that I think may be of influence (I don't have studies or anything, just personal/anecdotal evidence) is that people who have a "proper" way to take out aggression, tend to be a lot less aggressive in real life. For example I do martial arts and drums, both of which I can "beat up" to let anger out, and I feel better and calmer after and can easily separate when I am supposed to or not supposed to be violent. Or like screaming into a pillow, it's a anger move but it calms us down by letting out pent up anger in a non-destructive way.

[emberhermin]

Children: *punch a punching bag*
Adults: such horrible violence

[Qwnntm]

Imagine you get a 78 on a test and you come home and your dad says “neutral job Billy!”