The term ”social learning” is not something that appeared when we formalized education systems or implemented technology in L&D departments. As humans, we have always passed knowledge and culture in narratives. To this day, stories and tales allow us to observe, imitate and model other people’s behaviors. In other words, we learn (and we have always been learning) socially. 

Which is why, structured social learning as we know it cannot be separate from the workplace experience. It is common for companies to treat learning and development as a ‘thing of its own’. But, what if instead, we started treating it as part of the social experience at work? What if we focused on getting people to share more of what they already do at work (learn, think and discuss) while in the learning process? 

In the end, it’s all about telling more stories! It’s about creating a dynamic learning environment that sparks excitement, replication, and engagement. Keep on reading to learn how to leverage structured social learning and get your team to become active participants of their skill development.

These simple thoughts, prompted Psychologist Albert Bandura to study what we today refer to as “social learning theory”. This theory integrates both behavioral and cognitive theories of learning in order to provide a comprehensive model that may account for the bigger range of learning experiences that happen in day-to-day life. 

So, do we as human beings simply observe and copy? Do our learners simply observe a training program and imitate rightfully? Is that all vicarious learning and social learning? If that were the case, learning professionals would have had their work easily cut for them when creating any learning intervention. 

Social environments amplify these mediational processes. However, their effectiveness relies on how the learning experience and social elements of it are structured. As per Bandura’s insights, there are five key principles that determine the effectiveness of these social learning environments: attention, retention, similarity, motor reproduction, and motivation. 

Case studies help learners tackle and practice analytical skills. To make sure they succeed, case studies must be relatable to the learners’ daily experience. This will help remove any frictions and make sure they’re provoked enough to take action.

2- Retention: Is the content engaging enough to retain this information?

Retention is about how well knowledge, skills and behavior are remembered. Behaviors may be noticed, but they don’t always stick, which prevents imitation and repetition. 

Learning experiences must have reinforcement mechanisms or follow up activities if we want the behavior to be performed later by the observer. This is because much of social learning is not immediate, so this process is especially vital. Even if the behavior is reproduced shortly after seeing it, there needs to be a memory to refer to.

For example, follow up retention by organizing a live discussion on a shared resource to get learners talking about a piece they’ve already read. Talking about it – after reading about it – with others will repeat the content in their memory and improve retention through socializing.  

This is called “peer reviewing”, where learners work in small groups to review content previously presented. It will get people to check for understanding of a topic while helping them retain the information better through collaboration. Instructors adopt the ‘facilitator role’.

3. Similarity: Do I trust who is speaking? 

We are more likely to model the behaviors after individuals who are similar to us. Ultimately, this comes down to trust. To achieve this, learning experiences should include ways for the person with the knowledge (instructors) and receiver (learners) to build proximity and similarity. 

Proximity refers to how close learners feel to their instructors – how easy it is for them to reach for help or get feedback, for example. As for similarity, it is the idea that if we are learning and doing new things with people who are similar to us, such as our team colleagues, we are more likely to engage in the process.

This can be done through discussion forums, boards, chatting tools or software with embedded chatting features, creating posts with open ended questions to create conversations and lots more. Communities can be built synchronously and asynchronously; all you need is to allow a channel for it to happen. 

4. Motor reproduction: Is the notion explained well enough that I  can replicate it? 

Learning experiences are all about application, actions and practicality. If that aspect fails then we merely witness an awareness session. This influences our decisions on whether to try and imitate it or not. 

Many learners can consider the intellectuality and functionality of a theory or process. But it’s only once they apply it that they can appreciate its benefits. It’s at this point that they can decide how rewarding it may be if they decide to master it.  

When learners are assigned roles of importance during your experience, they can help others and hold the structure of your learning plan. Roles can be: coordinator for assignments, group leader, discussion mediator, activity coordinator, etc.

5. Motivation: Am I motivated to take action?

Possibly the toughest to measure, but easiest to observe. A learner will take action if the perceived reward of doing so outweighs the perceived cost. If reinforcing the behaviors is not important enough to the learners, they will not imitate it.

What’s important to remember is that this decision is subjective to the learner’s goals, how they like to be addressed, communicate, and learn. So, to motivate learners to take action, you have to think about what moves them towards action. In other words, what goals do they have and what do they consider a reward?  

We’ve looked at the role of purpose and relevance, but what drives motivation is having agency. To create a sense of agency among your learners, create multiple objectives for the learning experience. This way, they’ll have multiple options to work towards. 

And yes! That’s exactly what Stephen Covey’s 5th habit says, and it can work tremendously well here. Seek to understand what behaviors are seen as worthwhile by your learners. Whether that’s praise, recognition, positive feedback, merits or even points in a gamified learning system. 

Once you have identified those core behaviors, place your learners in a situation that rewards multiple behaviors and make them understand the value of imitating or reproducing them (aka, the reward).