VERBAL BEHAVIOR THERAPY

by | Oct 28, 2016 | Uncategorized

What Is Verbal Behavior Therapy?

Verbal Behavior Therapy teaches communication using the principles of Applied Behavior Analysis and the theories of behaviorist B.F. Skinner. By design, Verbal Behavior Therapy motivates a child, adolescent or adult to learn language by connecting words with their purposes. The student learns that words can help obtain desired objects or other results.

Therapy avoids focusing on words as mere labels (cat, car, etc.) Rather, the student learns how to use language to make requests and communicate ideas. To put it another way, this intervention focuses on understanding why we use words.

In his book Verbal Behavior, Skinner classified language into types, or “operants.” Each has a different function. Verbal Behavior Therapy focuses on four word types. They are:

  • Mand. A request. Example: “Cookie,” to ask for a cookie.
  • Tact. A comment used to share an experience or draw attention. Example: “airplane” to point out an airplane.
  • Intraverbal. A word used to answer a question or otherwise respond. Example: Where do you go to school? “Castle Park Elementary.”
  • Echoic. A repeated, or echoed, word. Example: “Cookie?” “Cookie!” (important as the student needs to imitate to learn)

Who Responds to Verbal Behavior Therapy?

Reports suggest that Verbal Behavior Therapy can help both young children beginning to learn language and older students with delayed or disordered language. It likewise helps many children and adults who sign or use visual supports or other forms of assisted communication.

What is the History and Scientific Support of Verbal Behavior Therapy?

Skinner published Verbal Behavior in 1957 to describe his functional analysis of language. In the 1970s, behavior analysts Vincent Carbone, Mark Sundberg and James Partington began adapting Skinner’s approach to create Verbal Behavior Therapy. Since 1982, the Association for Behavior Analysis International has published the annual, peer-reviewed journal The Analysis of Verbal Behavior.

Many small studies have supported the effectiveness of Verbal Behavior Therapy with children. (Dr. Sundberg summarized these in 2001, here.) However, a 2006 review of the scientific literature concluded that more research is needed to confirm effectiveness and identify who is most likely to benefit from the approach.

INFORMATION SOURCE: WWW.AUTISMSPEAKS.ORG