Psi Chi MPA Distinguished Lecturer
Toward an Agentic Theory for the New Millennium
Albert Bandura
Stanford University (CA)
TopicThis talk addresses the agentic perspective on which social cognitive theory is founded. Dr. Bandura does so in the context of the daunting challenges by the transformative changes in this millennium. These evolving realities provide people with extensive opportunities to influence their self-development and to shape the course their lives take.
Albert Bandura is the David Starr Jordan Professor of Social Sciences in Psychology at Stanford University. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of British Columbia in 1949 and his PhD in 1952 from the University of Iowa. After completing his doctorate, Dr. Bandura joined the faculty at Stanford University in 1953 where he has remained as an active faculty member, now in his 56th year. He served as chairman of the Department of Psychology and was honored by Stanford by being awarded an endowed chair.
Dr. Bandura is an innovative scholar whose pioneering work in social cognitive theory has served as a rich resource for academics, practitioners, and policy makers alike across disciplinary lines. His illustrative career includes groundbreaking work spanning a broad range of areas. His seminal research on social modeling expanded our view of human learning and the growing primacy of this mode of learning in this electronic era. His later research on self-regulatory mechanisms laid the theoretical foundation for his theory of human agency. These diverse programs of research blend his theoretical interests with an abiding concern for the use of our knowledge for human enlightenment and betterment.