Abstract
One of the defining characteristics of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a deficit or qualitative difference in typical language development. Some individuals may show a delay in acquiring language, or regression of previously learned language; while others develop a rich vocabulary, but still struggle with language comprehension. A behavioral account of language views language as a special type of behavior, influenced by its environmental variables (antecedents and consequences). Interventions informed by Skinner’s (Verbal behavior. Appleton-Century-Crofts, New York, 1957) analysis of verbal behavior focus on the function rather than topography or structure of language, and view training of separate elementary verbal operants as essential to the development of more complex language repertoires. This chapter will focus on four elementary verbal operants that are considered a starting point for language intervention programs for learners with ASD: mands, tacts, echoics, intraverbals. Evidence-based strategies to teach these basic verbal operants will be reviewed.
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Rosales, R., Garcia, Y.A. (2022). Verbal Behavior and Applied Behavior Analysis. In: Matson, J.L., Sturmey, P. (eds) Handbook of Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorder. Autism and Child Psychopathology Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-88538-0_38
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