Association for Behavior Analysis International

Social learning, or learning mediated by the interaction with others or their behavioral products, is a burgeoning field in psychology. Broadly, social learning researchers are interested in understanding the conditions under which organisms learn from one another rather than directly from the nonsocial environment, and if a tendency to learn socially varies across individuals, populations, and species. These questions are often positioned within a wider goal of understanding the evolution of culture, and are likely of great interest to behavior analysts. Additionally, social learning research has been criticized for overlooking the importance of associative learning mechanisms, providing an opportunity for behavior analysts to contribute. Here, I overview the social learning literature in an effort to introduce the terms and points of analysis to a behavior analytic audience, and highlight the areas in which a radical behaviorist framework can aid in the discovery of the mechanisms that underpin social learning abilities. I also overview the current popular questions in social learning research, including whether or not “high-fidelity” social learning processes, such as imitation and teaching, are required for cumulative culture, as well as the role of “complex contagion” in behavioral transmission.