reciprocal determinism

Definition. n. Reciprocal determinism is a concept involving three factors: a person's behavior, his or her personal internal factors or attributes (for example, personality), and his or her external environment. The concept of reciprocal determinism states that at any given time each of these three factors may be influencing the others or be influenced by them. More specifically, a person's behavior is influenced by internal factors as well as by the environment, the person's personal factors or attributes are also influenced by his or her behavior and by the environment, and the environment itself is influenced by the person's personal factors and behaviors.

Explanation. People and their environment interact in various ways. For instance, people select which environments they enter. In addition, people's attributes and their ways of looking at the world actually influence the way they interpret that environment. Consequently, two people in the same situation can interpret the environment in very different ways. For example, introverts may view attending a party as a somewhat stressful situation, while extroverts may find the same party to be relaxing and fun. This interpretation of the environment will affect the way these people behave. The extroverts may act open and friendly and thus attract potential new friends, whereas the introverts may appear unfriendly because they feel awkward, and therefore no one may approach them. In this case, the people's behaviors, which are based on their interpretations of the situation, can also influence the environment (the ways other people react toward them). This can further shape the people's future behaviors. (If no one is friendly toward the introverts at the party, they will be less likely to attend parties in the future). These behaviors may then influence the persons' personalities because if they engage in more and more introverted behaviors (such as avoid parties), they will become more committed to the perception that they are introverted. If people view themselves as more introverted, they will be more likely to practice introverted activities in the future and to avoid extroverted activities. On the other hand, extroverts will be likely to attend many parties and behave in a very outgoing way; this behavior may influence others to be more outgoing, and in this way the extrovert will have influenced the situation itself. People with different personalities, interests, and customs select different environments (different friends, jobs, neighborhoods, television shows, etc.). Though people select their environments on the basis of their preferences, the exposure to these environments continues to influence them and shape who they are. Reciprocal determinism is the concept of a never-ending cycle in which a person's personality and perceptions, his/her behavior, and his/her environment all influence each other. All of these elements affect and are affected by the others.

Development and details. At one time many psychologists (called behaviorists) believed that a person's behavior was influenced solely by external events in the environment. In essence, they believed that people had very little control over their behaviors; they were a product of their environment. However, this concept was considered to be too simplistic by other theorists. Social-cognitive psychologists thought behavior was a product of a person's interaction with his or her environment. Instead of the environment's being the sole influence on behavior, it was suggested that both the individual and the environment influence each other, as well as the behavior. Further it was noted that a person's behavior can also influence the individual and the environment. The interaction of all these factors was labeled reciprocal determinism because all of the factors influence (or determine) the others simultaneously. – vkp, lab