Social Cognitive Theory

Social Cognitive Theory

Introduction

A number of social issues are prevailing in the society these days, with some of them posing serious challenges to the social scientists and other social workers. It is essential to ensure that these issues and problems are properly addressed and the appropriate theories are applied to them in order to ensure that they are resolved before they get out of control. It is essential to note that the a number of components have to be kept in consideration for providing solution to the issues, including the use of right and appropriate intervention method and the use of right population and suitable target audience.

Discussion

Issue, population and setting

The social issues selected for this assignment is 'Breastfeeding', and Social Cognitive Theory is applied to the setting in order to ensure that proper solution to the issue is presented. It is essential to note that breastfeeding has been proved to be the best and ideal source of nourishment and food for the new born, and a number of researchers have shown that it assists infants in developing better immunity and stronger self, mainly because of its contents. However, the social scientists have observed that the trend of breastfeeding children is on a sharp decrease and more and more mothers are opting out of the practice these days (Moskowitz, 2005). The situation is not only leading to serious health and fitness issues in children but is also causing similar problems for mothers, thus forcing the social scientists to take some serious action.

In order to find solution to the problem, the social scientists have proposed the use of social cognitive theory, which seeks to use the experiments and trials of other for bringing about betterment in the society. According to the social cognitive theory, various intervention programs can be launched in the society to ensure that awareness is created in the society and concern3ed individuals are provided with the right information at the right time. The population in this case is composed of new mothers as well as pregnant ladies, who are willing to seek information regarding child bearing and rearing. In addition to the ladies, their husbands are also included in the population to ensure that the whole family is informed and updated about the importance of breastfeeding.

Theory and approach used to address the issue

Social cognitive theory used to describe the issue implies that individuals can be informed and updated about the results of their actions and proceedings by using various methods, thus bringing about betterment in the society (Turner, 2002). In other words, the social observations and criterion can be used to highlight the various social issues and problems, which can later be used to ensure that the individuals are properly updated and informed about the same. The theory basically implies that individuals can learn behavior and attitude by learning from other's experience, which means that the experiments made by previous mothers can be used to teach and educate the current ...