According to social cognitive theory, we learn behavior by watching the behaviors of those whom we have identified as models (Bandura, 2001). We must first attend to the modeled behavior, then remember it, and then have the ability and motivation to imitate it. We are particularly likely to imitate modeled behaviors when we see that the models are rewarded for what they do—when your big brother gets lots of praise for playing the guitar, you then try to play the guitar! How does this apply to media effects? Media provide many modeled behaviors for children and adults to learn from and imitate, both positive (sharing, giving to charity) and negative (violence). Decades of experimental studies looking at the effects of television violence on children’s behavior have found that children are more likely to be aggressive after viewing rewarded rather than punished TV violence (see Bushman & Huesmann, 2001, for a review). Most studies are limited to examining short-term effects (behavior right after viewing), so it is unclear whether children would make long-term behavior changes after a one-time viewing experience, especially if they later get in trouble at home or school for being aggressive.

There are several factors besides rewards and punishments that can increase the likelihood of imitating behaviors we witness on television (violent or otherwise). Children are more likely to imitate behavior that is realistic (as opposed to fantasy), justified (the character has a good reason for doing it), and committed by characters the children identify with (the hero or villain) (Wilson et al., 2002). The good news is that providing strong, likeable, and realistic positive role models for your children can promote good behavior. But remember that children are not “sponges” of media behavior—their own unique interests and motivations also affect their interpretations of media models and their likelihood of imitation (Ferguson & Dyck, 2012).