Referent-Based Instruction

Modeling Verbal Behavior Deficits with the Stimulus Control Ratio Equation, SCoRE | ProtocolThis article describes the procedures for conducting a verbal operant analysis (VOA), calculating the stimulus control ratio equation...

Referent-Based Verbal Behavior Instruction for Children with AutismSkinner’s (1957) analysis of verbal behavior deconstructed language according to stimulus control. Although the functional independence of these verbal operants has been empirically demonstrated, more commonly, a speaker’s verbal behavior is induced by a convergence of controlling stimuli. However, circumscribed stimulus control may inhibit the development of complex verbal repertoires for some individuals, including those with autism spectrum disorders. For this reason, in the current paper, we propose a behavior analytic intervention with the overarching goal of establishing multiple control over verbal behavior through the conditioning of referent stimuli. Referent-based instruction emphasizes teaching the operant class over specific targets Multiple control is established by converging verbal behavior around the referent Progress is measured in terms of a stimulus control ratio Eliminates arbitrary decision making Referent-based instruction emphasizes teaching the operant class over specific targets Multiple control is established by converging verbal behavior around the referent Progress is measured in terms of a stimulus control ratio Eliminates arbitrary decision making

Referent-Based Instruction to Strengthen the Verbal Behavior of Early Learners with Autism and Related Language DisordersThe current study evaluated the use of precision teaching to address the verbal behavior deficits of children with autism and other language disorders. From 2013 to 2018, a high-research-activity doctoral university in the south-central United States operated a free clinic that provided applied behavior anlaysis services to early learners in the local community. Participants received referent-based verbal behavior instruction to strengthen their functional language skills by systematically transferring stimulus control across 4 primary verbal operants: mands, echoics, tacts, and sequelics. Referent-based instruction is premised on the notion that proportionate levels of strength among these 4 operants provide the relational flexibility of naturalistic speaking observed in typical language development. This article details the language gains made by 49 participants who received 13 weeks of intervention for 90 min a day, 4 days a week. Relative strengths and weaknesses were identified in the verbal repertoire of each participant, and individualized fluency aims were subsequently developed. Results of pretest and posttest comparisons show that there was a large effect size within the verbal behavior gains of participants who received precision teaching. Implications for implementing referent-based instruction, as well as future areas of research, are discussed.

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