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Skinner’s Verbal Behavior may be a difficult read for some. The content is complex but unpacks all aspects of verbal behavior. One can gain a lot of insight from his book if completely understanding it. In part 1 of this analysis, Mark Sundberg explains how language is typically measured and how Skinner suggests language should be measured, and in what units to measure it.

“Skinner’s work is squarely within the tradition of Humanistic Philosophy. This is accurate despite the objections of others. What we know of as Behavior Analysis is much more in keeping with Humanistic Philosophy and Skinner’s place should not be argued.” 

“When I was in university, I asked my professor, ‘How do I teach language skills to kids?” and my professor gave me Skinner’s Verbal Behavior book. So, the answer is not exactly in the book, but it is ultimately in the book”

Verbal behavior is a topic that is most associated with a clinical setting. One of the main targets for clinicians, particularly for early intervention, is teaching mands (likely related to snacks or iPads), tacts, and intraverbals. However, the concepts of verbal behavior are present in everyday interactions and impact how we communicate with others.

“Really what we’re looking at here is trying to apply our science in the most ethical way possible.” Bobby Newman PhD, BCBA-D, LBA 

Very few books are celebrated on their 50th or 60th anniversary. Dr. Henry Schlinger makes the case for why Verbal Behavior is one of those books. Skinner himself noted that “It will, I believe, prove to be my most important work” (Skinner, 1977, p. 379). The story of how this book came to be is almost as complex as the topic itself.

Shaping, or the differential reinforcement of successive approximations, is thought by many to be the most important tool in the behavior analyst’s toolbox. Shaping is usually thought of as something one human does to change the behavior of another living organism, most often to a human but also to a pet or a laboratory subject of the nonhuman persuasion. In such cases, the human is the agent of the shaping in that the human decides the conditions under which successive approximations do or do not merit reinforcement. 

In speaking of the origins of operant behavior, Skinner famously observed that “[o]perant conditioning shapes behavior as a sculptor shapes a lump of clay.

This infographic will give you basic information on what verbal behavior is and how it is defined.

If you have ever worked with vocal-verbal humans, it would be no surprise to hear the differences in complexity between two speakers. B.F. Skinner developed and produced Verbal Behavior attempting to provide a thorough functional account of language that has proved to be imperative in teaching basic verbal operants. However, refinements for more complex behavior may be useful.

Sitting here at my desk on a cold, snowy morning watching the snowflakes gently descend to blanket the landscape outside my window (such descriptions reveal why I am a behavior analyst and not a poet), reminds me of the operant (another reminder, too, of why I am not a poet). The operant is one of our most important concepts. Operants are classes of responses that have a similar effect on the environment. That effect can be to operate something that allows their measurement (like a child’s block-stacking or a pigeon’s key peck) or to produce a reinforcer or punisher.

This month on Thought Leaders, we are sitting down and speaking with Tom Freeman more about his history and where he sees the field of behavior analysis going.

The distinction between public and private is by no means the same as that between physical and mental. B.F. Skinner 

So, did you do the homework from last episode? Here's a recap:

Can you operationally define PERMA? How could you use this in your personal and professional life? Can you incorporate Emotional Intelligence into your practices? Do these practices fit within our scope of practice and ethical code?

Well, go ahead and give Dr. Scott Geller a listen. We may have an amazing science at the tips of our fingers, but we need to continuously learn from other fields.

Discusses the meaning of the term analysis both generally and within behavior analysis.