If Imitation is Despised, How Is It That Role Modeling Is Prized?
“Imitation is degradation of self,” says King James. How very true! In the Oxford dictionary, the synonyms of ‘imitation’ are sham, fake, counterfeit, bogus, spurious, phoney. It is, in fact, an offence and a lot of court cases deal with violations of copyrights, trademarks and plagiarism as well as stealing of secret data. There is no wonder, then, that almost all agree with King James in their hearts. But still, there is all-round conscious or subconscious imitation going on, though no one will admit it. Against this background, one wonders how the imitation of others’ behaviours and qualities, which goes under the 'exalted' idea of ‘Role Modelling’, is highly commended and widely practised. The term ‘Role Modelling’ was introduced by sociologist Robert Merton and further developed by Albert Bandura. Bandura found that "individuals tend to be active observers of their environments. During these observations, people make note of the behaviours exhibited by others...