Psychology Chapter 7 Flashcards

Questions and Answers

What does Skinner mean when he says that the analysis has, up to this point, reduced the role of the speaker as a causal agent determining his own verbal behavior?

Skinner's analysis identified environmental sources of control for verbal behavior eliminating the role of the speaker as a causal agent. Behavior maintained by the effect it has on other behavior of yours is still determined and the stimuli involved are still part of the environment.

What is the basis of Skinner's unwillingness to attribute complex behavior to a controlling self or personality?

The locus of control is always going to be in the environment. To attribute behavior to the personality would be to ignore the environmental variables of which behavior has a function.

What is the relationship between tacting one's own behavior and self-awareness?

Tacting one's own behavior is a form of self-awareness. Self-awareness is responding under the control of the stimuli you emit in your own responding.

What is an autoclitic?

An autoclitic is a verbal operant maintained by the effect it has on the reinforcement of other verbal operants. Signup and view all the answers

Give several different examples, and explain why each is an autoclitic.

Examples include: TBI patient says 'it's a...' when presented with a picture, word ordering, punctuation, or any aspect of a response that affects how that response affects a listener. Signup and view all the answers

What is a descriptive autoclitic?

A descriptive autoclitic is under discriminative control of stimuli associated with the accompanying verbal operant. Signup and view all the answers

What are descriptive autoclitics that inform the listener of the type of verbal behavior they accompany?

'I see it is going to rain...' or 'I heard.' Signup and view all the answers

What are descriptive autoclitics that describe the state of strength of a verbal response?

'I guess the answer could be...' or stimuli associated with probability. Signup and view all the answers

What are descriptive autoclitics that describe the relations between responses and other verbal behavior?

'Ditto', 'same', 'I disagree'. Signup and view all the answers

What are descriptive autoclitics that indicate the emotional or motivational conditions of the speaker?

'I regret to inform you.' Signup and view all the answers

Discuss several different examples of autoclitics which specifically mandate listener behavior.

'Think about it this way', 'Listen', '...and vice versa', 'consider the equation...'. Signup and view all the answers

What is a qualifying autoclitic? What does it qualify?

An autoclitic that is maintained by the effect it has on the intensity or direction of the listener's response to an accompanying verbal operant. Signup and view all the answers

Why is negation considered a qualifying autoclitic? Illustrate your answer with some examples.

Negation reverses the direction of the response which affects the listener's response to a verbal stimulus. Examples include 'Don't do it', 'not that way - this way', 'I don't think that's right'. Signup and view all the answers

What special problem in the analysis of verbal behavior is raised by such responses as, 'There is no orange juice on the table'? What solution does Skinner propose to this problem?

The absence of a stimulus in and of itself can't exert control of a response. Skinner proposes the response 'no' might occur under compound discriminative control given the absence of a thing. Signup and view all the answers

Construct a plausible scenario whereby a child learns to say correctly 'not'.

Exclusion-type discriminative control can be taught. Signup and view all the answers

Explain why expressions containing 'not' and affixes such as '-less' may not indicate any autoclitic activity in a given instance.

Those extensions are only the first instance before reinforcement. The actual extension may be rare. Signup and view all the answers

Why is assertion considered a qualifying autoclitic?

Assertion increases the strength of the listener's response. Signup and view all the answers

Assertive autoclitics: (a) those which indicate that the response is emitted as a tact?

'It is', associated with nonverbal stimulus (tact) - useful for the listener because they are experiencing the situation. Signup and view all the answers

Assertive autoclitics (B) those which indicate that the response is emitted as an intraverbal?

Speaker says 'Big Bad...' Listener responds 'Wolf'. Signup and view all the answers

Assertive autoclitics (C) those which indicate that certain limits of stimulus control have been respected?

'The dog is not a wolf but it's wolf-like.' Signup and view all the answers

Assertive autoclitics (D) those which indicate the kind or degree of tact extension?

'It's kind of like....', 'That's sort of like....' Signup and view all the answers

Assertive autoclitics (E) those which indicate the probability or correspondence between a future event and the controlling stimulus?

'Perhaps'. Signup and view all the answers

What is a quantifying autoclitic? Give and explain several different examples.

Quantifying autoclitics are under control of numerical properties of stimuli. Examples: Numbers, 'Can I have some of that?' Signup and view all the answers

Why are 'a' and 'the' considered autoclitics?

'A' book indicates ANY singular book, 'the' book indicates a particular book. Signup and view all the answers

What role does automatic reinforcement play in the development of grammatical practices?

Automatic reinforcement maintains precurrent covert verbal behavior and grammar/grammatical practices can be maintained by there being effective components of precurrent responding. Signup and view all the answers

What is a relational autoclitic?

A relational autoclitic is an autoclitic that entails the arrangement of verbal stimuli. Signup and view all the answers

What is a manipulative autoclitic?

A manipulative autoclitic is an autoclitic that requires subsequent responding on the part of the listener in order to affect behavior. Signup and view all the answers

Explain, with examples, five non-autoclitic functions (or controlling variables) of ordering verbal responses.

A) Speech sounds come in specific order to form responses. Example - Lookout versus outlook. B) The relevant stimuli may occur in a natural order and be described that way. Example - a recipe, alphabet. C) One thing occasions the next - reciting the alphabet. D) Order may be determined by the relative strength of responses, the strongest response will occur first. E) The rhetorical arrangement has a differential effect on stimuli. Example - rhetorical question. Signup and view all the answers

Be able to give examples of tagging and grouping as relational autoclitics.

Grouping is the arrangement of responses with regard to each other. Tagging is adding letters (stimuli) to the response to change the function. Example - the boy's dog, the dog's boy. Signup and view all the answers

How does a functional analysis of verbal behavior differ from a linguistic or grammatical analysis in terms of its treatment of units?

Linguistic: Sentence is the unit. Autoclitics: Not a fixed unit size. All aspects of behavior can come under control of differential consequences, even things as small as the ordering of words in a sentence. Signup and view all the answers

How are autoclitic frames established, and how do they function?

An autoclitic frame is a response that reliably co-occurs with other particular operants that come under control of the accompanying sources of stimulation. Signup and view all the answers

Explain the autoclitic function of 'but', 'and', 'if', 'all', and the order of the words in 'Had we but world enough and time, we could go through the proper motions.'

A) 'But' to exclude something, B) 'And' to add something, C) 'If' requires a manipulative autoclitic, D) 'All' is a quantifying autoclitic, E) Ordering of words is a relational autoclitic. Signup and view all the answers

Explain the following statement: 'Many instances of verbal behavior which contain grammatical or syntactical autoclitics may not represent true autoclitic activity.'

Autoclitic activity has to modify the listener's response to a standard verbal operant. If differences in response patterns have no differential effect on the listener, then they wouldn't be examples of autoclitics. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Skinner's Analysis of Verbal Behavior

Skinner's approach minimizes the speaker's role as a causal agent, emphasizing environmental influences on behavior.
Verbal behavior is maintained by its effects on another's behavior and the surrounding stimuli.

Locus of Control

Behavior is determined primarily by environmental variables, not personality traits.
Attributing actions to personality overlooks critical environmental factors.

Tacting and Self-Awareness

Tacting one’s behavior is aligned with self-awareness, responding to stimuli controlled by one’s own actions.
This form of verbal operant allows recognition and description of one's behavior.

Autoclitics Defined

Autoclitics are verbal operants that shape and reinforce other verbal behaviors.
They create a framework for other verbal operants and influence listener interpretation.

Examples of Autoclitics

A TBI patient may say "it's a..." indicating a tact loss but maintaining autoclitic function.
Word order and punctuation can serve as autoclitics by modifying listener responses.

Descriptive Autoclitics

A descriptive autoclitic describes the verbal behavior it accompanies, subject to environmental stimuli.
Examples include statements conveying the likelihood of events, such as "I guess the answer could be..."

Variants of Descriptive Autoclitics

(a) Indicate the type of verbal behavior, e.g., “I see it is going to rain.”
(b) Describe response strength, through cues like "I guess."
(c) Show relationships between responses without altering the original response.
(d) Reflect emotional states, such as “I regret to inform you.”

Manding Listener Behavior

Autoclitics can manipulate listener actions through phrases like "Listen" or "Consider."

Qualifying Autoclitics

They influence the intensity or direction of the listener's response, enhancing the original verbal operant, e.g., negation modifies listener action.

Analyzing Responses Without Stimuli

"There is no orange juice..." raises concerns in verbal behavior analysis; the absence of stimuli can't singularly control responses.
Responses may emerge under conditions of compound discriminative control influenced by absence or presence of stimuli.

Learning About Negation

Children can learn negation through structured discriminative control methods.

The Complexity of "Not" and Other Affixes

Genuine negation may be infrequent; extensions occur primarily prior to reinforcement, complicating autoclitic function assessment.

Assertion as a Qualifying Autoclitic

Assertion enhances listener engagement, indicating heightened truthfulness of the response.

Assertive Autoclitics

(a) Mark responses emitted as tacts, related to nonverbal stimuli.
(b) Indicate responses as intraverbals, where speaker responses prompt listener actions.
(c) Show observed limits of stimulus control.
(d) Indicate extent of tact extensions, such as "kind of like..."
(e) Reflect probability relations between events, underscoring informativeness.

Quantifying Autoclitics

Governed by numerical properties, like "Can I have some of that?" indicating specific quantities.

Role of Articles as Autoclitics

Articles like "a" and "the" refine listener interpretation, indicating specificity and singularity in meaning.

Automatic Reinforcement in Grammar

Maintains covert verbal behavior necessary for grammar, ensuring effective precurrent responding.

Relational Autoclitics

Entail arranging verbal stimuli differently, affecting meaning, as shown by possessive arrangements like "the boy's dog."

Manipulative Autoclitics

Require listener responses to prompt behavioral change based on specific verbal cues.

Non-Autoclitic Functions of Verbals

Patterning, relevant stimulus order, verbal stimulation order, relative response strength, and rhetorical effects shape listener responses diversely.

Tagging and Grouping in Relation to Autoclitics

Grouping arranges responses relationally, while tagging alters function through added descriptors.

Functional versus Linguistic Analysis

Functional analysis views verbal behavior's units flexibly, while linguistic analysis focuses on fixed sentence structure.

Establishing Autoclitic Frames

Autoclitic frames arise through consistent co-occurrence with specific operants, solidifying verbal behavior patterns.

Autoclitic Functions of Connectives

"But" excludes, "and" adds, "if" denotes conditions, "all" quantifies, and word orders influence meaning in communication.

Grammatical and Syntactical Autoclitics

Not all grammatical structures represent true autoclitic functions unless they elicit differential responses from listeners.

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Description

Explore Skinner's analysis of verbal behavior in this quiz. Understand how environmental factors influence speech and the role of the speaker as a causal agent. Test your knowledge with key concepts from Chapter 7.