fei75766_ch18_569-609.indd 575  02/24/20 10:50 AM
Chapter 18     Rotter and Mischel: Cognitive Social Learning Theory575
asnack. Thevending machine isinperfect working condition, sothere isa100% 
probability thatthewoman’s response willbefollowed bysome sortofreinforce -
ment. Herexpectancy ofreinforcement, therefore, forthecandy bar,cornchips, 
potato chips, popcorn, tortilla chips, andDanish pastry areallequal. Herresponse—
thatis,which button shepresses—is determined bythereinforcement value ofeach
snack.
When expectancies andsituational variables areheldconstant, behavior is
shaped byone’s preference forthepossible reinforcements, thatis,reinforcement 
value. Inmost situations, ofcourse, expectancies areseldom equal, andprediction is
difficult because bothexpectancy andreinforcement value canvary.
What determines thereinforcement value foranyevent, condition, oraction? 
First, theindividual’s perception contributes tothepositive ornegative value ofan
event. Rotter callsthisperception internal reinforcement anddistinguishes itfrom 
external reinforcement, which refers toevents, conditions, oractions onwhich one’s 
society orculture places avalue. Internal andexternal reinforcements maybeeither in
harmony oratavariance withoneanother. Forexample, ifyoulikepopular movies—
thatis,thesame onesthatmost other people like—then yourinternal andexternal 
reinforcements forattending these types ofmovies areinagreement. However, ifyour
tasteinmovies runscontrary tothatofyourfriends, thenyourinternal andexternal 
reinforcements arediscrepant.
Another contributor toreinforcement value isone’s needs. Generally, aspecific 
reinforcement tends toincrease invalue astheneed itsatisfies becomes stronger. A
starving child places ahigher value onabowl ofsoup thandoesamoderately hun-
gryone.(This issue ismore fullydiscussed laterinthischapter inthesection titled 
Needs.)
Reinforcements arealsovalued according totheirexpected consequences for
future reinforcements. Rotter believed thatpeople arecapable ofusing cognition to
anticipate asequence ofevents leading tosome future goalandthattheultimate goal
contributes tothereinforcement value ofeachevent inthesequence. Reinforcements 
seldom occur independently offuture related reinforcements butarelikely toappear 
inreinforcement-reinforcement sequences, which Rotter (1982) referred toasclusters 
ofreinforcement.
Humans aregoal-oriented; theyanticipate achieving agoaliftheybehave ina
particular way.Other things being equal, goals withthehighest reinforcement value 
aremost desirable. Desire alone, however, isnotsufficient topredict behavior. The
potential foranybehavior isafunction ofbothexpectancy andreinforcement value 
aswellasthepsychological situation.
Psychological Situation
Thefourth variable intheprediction formula isthepsychological situation (s),defined 
asthatpartoftheexternal andinternal world towhich aperson isresponding. Itis
notsynonymous withexternal stimuli, although physical events areusually important 
tothepsychological situation. 
Behavior istheresult ofneither environmental events norpersonal traits; rather, 
itstems from theinteraction ofaperson withhisorhermeaningful environment. IfFinal PDF to printer