PS560 Discussion

PS560 Discussion

Exploring Verbal Behavior

Using the textbooks and other scholarly sources to help guide you, define each of the elementary verbal operants; identify whether each operant has point to point correspondence and/or formal similarity, along with the kind of reinforcement that will function to maintain that verbal behavior. Next, provide a real-life example of each operant from your own personal experience, identifying the specific SD that may evoke each verbal operant and the contingencies that occur as a result of that verbal behavior. Finally, provide a clear set of examples (you may include diagrams) of how your verbal behavior is under divergent and convergent control.

Review two of your classmate's responses using following ideas as a guide:

• Review your peer's response for accuracy in defining and identifying the characteristics of each verbal operant. Provide constructive feedback accordingly.
• Is each of the examples an accurate representation of the target operant with regards to the identification of the three-term contingency? Provide an alternate suggestion for SD's or reinforcement of the verbal behavior as needed.
• Ask at least one thoughtful follow up question. Reply to Kaylah Healy: A behavioral analysis of language focuses on identifying the antecedents and consequences that control both the listener and speaker’s behavior. Verbal behavior is influenced by motivating operations (MOs), nonverbal discriminative stimuli (SDs), and verbal SDs, forming the basis of the elementary verbal operants (Cooper et al., 2020). A mand is evoked by a MO, while reinforcement maintains the mand, meaning the speaker receives what is requested. For example, after a long day, I may feel tired (MO) and say, “I am going to get some coffee,” and the behavior is reinforced by access to coffee and energy being replenished. A tact is evoked by a nonverbal SD and maintained by generalized reinforcement such as attention. When I observe a client walking in the center (instead of running), I say, “nice job walking!”, my response is controlled by what I see and reinforced socially (Fisher et al., 2021) The duplic operant includes echoic, motor imitation, and copying text, in which all include point-to-point correspondence and formal similarity. For example, if a board-certified behavior analyst (BCBA) says, “use least-to-most prompting,” and I repeat the phrase, my response then matches the stimulus and is maintained by generalized reinforcement (Fisher et al., 2021). Codic operants such as textual behavior and dictation include point-to point correspondence but not formal similarity. Reading “verbal operants” out loud (written SD) and saying it (textual codic) or typing notes (taking dictation codic) are all maintained by generalized reinforcement such as task completion (Cooper et al., 2020). Intraverbals are evoked by verbal SDs without point-to point correspondence. For example, being asked, “what is your job description?” (verbal SD) and responding, “I am a registered behavior therapist” (intraverbal) is reinforced socially when the listener attends to the response (Cooper et al., 2020). Listener discrimination, such as receptive language, includes responding appropriately to verbal SDs. For example, when someone says, “walk with me” (verbal SD), I stand up and walk with them (listener response), being reinforced by completing the demand. According to Cooper et al. (2020), verbal behavior is influenced by multiple variables. Divergent multiple control happens when one stimulus evokes multiple responses. For example:SD: "Tell me about your job" ↓Responses: " I am an RBT " → " I increase adaptive, self-management, and social skills of children with autism spectrum disorders " → "I work in ABA.”Convergent multiple control happens when multiple stimuli evoke a single response. For example:SD1: Aversive stimuli such as loud environmentSD2: Task demand presentedHistory: Escape-maintained behavior ↓Response: "Do you need a break?" Research has shown that training of verbal operants, along with response interruption and redirection, can increase appropriate communication while reducing inappropriate vocalizations (Colón et al., 2012). Understanding verbal operants expresses the importance of teaching each function independently while promoting generalization (Fryling, 2017). By identifying the specific antecedents and consequences for each verbal operant, I can improve how I reinforce, model, and observe communication in both professional and everyday contexts (LaFrance & Tarbox, 2020). References:Cooper, J. O., Heron, T. E., & Heward, W. L. (2020). Applied behavior analysis (3rd ed.). Pearson.Fisher, W. W., Piazza, C. C., & Roane, H. S. (2021). Handbook of applied behavior analysis. Guilford Press.Colón, C. L., Ahearn, W. H., Clark, K. M., & Masalsky, J. (2012). The effects of verbal operant training and response interruption and redirection on appropriate and inappropriate vocalizations. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 45(1), 107–120.Fryling, M. (2017). The functional independence of Skinner’s verbal operants: Conceptual and applied implications. Behavioral Interventions, 32, 70–78.LaFrance, D. L., & Tarbox, J. (2020). The importance of multiple exemplar instruction in the establishment of novel verbal behavior. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 53(1), 10–24. Reply to Ciani Ricks: Language is learned behavior that is shaped and maintained through reinforcement (Cooper et al., 2020). Language translates to verbal behavior emitted through interactions between a speaker and a listener. The responses evoked are described by their form, relating to their topography (e.g., vocal, textual, sign language), and their function (the meaning or what type of response will be reinforced) (Cooper et al., 2020). For example, the response “green” will not be reinforced if evoked by the question “what do you drive with?”. Understanding the function, or what controls a verbal response, is crucial to the analysis of verbal behavior because the same response can be emitted for a variety of different reasons (Fisher et al., 2021).When teaching verbal operant concepts, the goal is to promote maintenance and generalization, more specifically functional interdependence or generativity. This promotes the skill to effectively communicate with others and continuously allows for the emergence of new skills by applying learned behaviors to novel situations. The elementary verbal operants in applied behavior analysis (ABA) include mands, tacts, intraverbals, codics, and duplics. These operants are not causes of behavior, but constructs used to describe functional relations between variables and responses (Fryling, 2017).Mand – A mand is a request for an item, action, or need, using verbal or nonverbal communication. For example, humans mand for a variety of things, including asking for water or asking to play with a toy. A mand does not have point-to-point correspondence or formal similarity. To maintain this verbal behavior, specific reinforcement is required. After manding, access to the requested item strengthens the behavior. In my personal experience, I mand every time I order food at a restaurant. The motivating operation of hunger makes food valuable to me. As I am driving and see the sign for a restaurant, the presence of the building with its lights on serves as a discriminative stimulus (SD) that reinforcement is available. After ordering my food, I expect to receive what I specifically requested, which reinforces my food-ordering behavior as a consequence.Tact – A tact is the identification or labeling of an entity in the environment. For example, when asked “What am I holding?”, the labeled item in hand would be named, and this labeling is described as a tact. A tact does not have point-to-point correspondence or formal similarity. Social approval serves as reinforcement for tacts. After correct labeling, the teacher provides positive reinforcement, which establishes the basis for future labeling behavior across a variety of stimuli. In my own personal experience, I use tacting when getting ready to leave. Determining whether an umbrella will be used that day relies on labeling the weather when I look outside. When I return back into the apartment, my partner usually asks, “what does it look like outside,” to which I reply with a description such as “rainy,” “clear,” or “windy.” Because I came into direct contact with the physical environment, this is considered a tact. In this scenario, the SD that evoked the behavior was the verbal stimulus of my boyfriend asking for a description of outside conditions. The behavior is my labeling of those conditions, and reinforcement is social approval as he steps outside with the correct garments on.Intraverbal – An intraverbal is a response to another person’s verbal behavior, typically occurring in conversational exchanges. For example, responding to the question “What did you do this weekend?” is an intraverbal. Intraverbals do not have point-to-point correspondence or formal similarity. Generalized conditioned reinforcement (GCR) strengthens intraverbal behavior. GCR includes nonspecific forms of reinforcement that maintain conversation, such as head nods or the continuation of interaction. In my personal experience, I engage in intraverbal behavior during conversations. Today, I went to the dentist and was asked, “what is your name,” to which I replied, “Ciani Ricks.” The SD of a verbal stimulus (the question) evoked my response. This behavior was reinforced by the continuation of the interaction. If the receptionist responded with confusion, this may function as a punishing stimulus and could decrease the likelihood of similar responding in the future, while motivating operations may evoke behavior to escape the aversive situation of awkwardness.Duplic – A duplic is a form of echoic behavior in which an individual repeats the verbal behavior of a stimulus. For example, a person singing along with their favorite song is engaging in duplic behavior. A duplic has point-to-point correspondence and formal similarity and is maintained through generalized conditioned reinforcement (GCR). Imitations of verbal stimuli are often met with social approval, attention, or praise, which signal that the response was correct. In my personal experience, I engage in duplic behavior when listening to music with friends. The SD of hearing music evokes my behavior of singing along, which is met with social approval. Inaccurate responding may result in social disapproval, which is typically avoided.Codic – A codic is a form of verbal behavior that involves point-to-point correspondence but lacks formal similarity between the stimulus and response. For example, reading words from a book aloud is codic behavior. Codics are maintained through generalized conditioned reinforcement (GCR). I use codic behavior at work when helping my client with lessons. The SD of written words on paper, along with the motivating operation of wanting to help the student understand, evokes my response of reading the question aloud. The contingency is reinforcement from the student, as they are now able to understand and respond to the task.To be under the control of both convergent and divergent control means that verbal behavior is multiply controlled. The combination of these controls allows for the strengthening or weakening of a response (Michael et al., 2011). Multiple control refers to the relationship between variables and responses. Convergent control occurs when a single response is controlled by multiple stimuli, whereas divergent control occurs when a single stimulus evokes multiple responses. In my own behavior, convergent control can be seen when describing the weather to my boyfriend. My response “rainy” is influenced by both the nonverbal stimulus of observing rain outside and the verbal stimulus of being asked “what does it look like outside,” with both stimuli converging to evoke the same response. Divergent control is also demonstrated in this same situation, as the single stimulus of my boyfriend asking about the weather can evoke multiple possible responses such as “rainy,” “windy,” or “cold,” depending on the conditions observed, illustrating how one stimulus can produce a variety of verbal responses. Cooper, J. O., Heron, T. E., & Heward, W. L. (2020). Applied behavior analysis (3rd ed.).Pearson.Fisher, W. W., Piazza, C. C., & Roane, H. S. (2021). Handbook of applied behavior analysis (2nded.). Guilford Press.Fryling, M. (2017). The functional independence of Skinner’s verbal operants: Conceptualand applied implications. Behavioral Interventions 32, 70–78.Miguel, C. F. (2018). Problem-solving, bidirectional naming, and the development of verbalrepertoires. Behavior Analysis: Research and Practice, 18(4), 340–353.