Final answer:
The theory that suggests learning can be observed and measured is known as behaviorism. Observational learning, a concept within social learning theory proposed by Albert Bandura, focuses on learning behaviors through watching and imitating others.
Step-by-step explanation:
The theory that posits learning behaviors can be observed, measured, and documented is commonly known as behaviorism. Specifically, observational learning, as part of social learning theory, is the process of acquiring behaviors by watching and imitating the actions of others. Psychologist Albert Bandura made significant contributions to this field by demonstrating that learning can occur without direct reinforcement and that internal mental states play a role in the learning process. He proposed that through observational learning, individuals learn by paying attention to a model's behavior, retaining what they have observed, attempting to reproduce the behavior, and being motivated to continue the behavior based on observed outcomes, such as rewards or punishments.
There are various forms of learning, including habituation, conditioning, and cognitive learning. A child might learn through conditioning by receiving a bedtime story as a reward for putting away toys, or through observational learning by watching a parent or a teacher and then imitating their actions. Bandura's work highlighted the importance of social context and cognitive processes in observational learning, going beyond the basic behaviorist notion of learning through reinforcement alone.