Multiple Exemplar Instruction and the Emergence of Generative Production of Suffixes as Autoclitic Frames

Abstract

We report 2 experiments that tested the effects of multiple exemplar instruction (MEI) across training sets on the emergence of productive autoclitic frames (suffixes) for 6 preschoolers with and without language-based disabilities. We implemented multiple exemplar tact instruction with subsets of stimuli whose "names" contained the suffix "-er" denoting the comparative form of adjectives. Subsets of stimuli included regular, irregular, and contrived tacts containing the target relational autoclitic frame in order to determine if our MEI procedure would induce the abstraction of the frame across all stimulus sets. In the second experiment, additional tasks were introduced to the participants to control for a possible sequence effect. A nonconcurrent multiple probe design was used to evaluate the functional relation between MEI and emergence of untaught tact responses containing the comparative adjective "-er." The results of both experiments showed relations between MEI and novel, untaught tact responses containing the target autoclitic frame; the second experiment showing a functional relation. The results are discussed in terms of environmental sources for productive verbal behavior.

The importance of multiple exemplar instruction in the establishment of novel verbal behavior

“…Nuzzolo‐Gomez and Greer's () findings have been replicated across participants of different ages (e.g., 3 to 7 years of age), with typically and atypically developing children (Luke, et al, ), children with autism (Nuzzolo‐Gomez & Greer, ; Eby et al, ), bilingual children (Luke et al, ), and across verbal topographies (e.g., taking dictation and vocal spelling, Eby et al, ; Greer, Yuan & Gautreaux, ; regular and irregular past tense verbs, Greer & Yuan, ; noun and adjective forms containing suffixes ending in ‘‐er’ , Speckman et al, ). Further comparisons of the differential effectiveness of SEI and MEI (Eby et al, ; Greer & Yuan, ; Speckman et al, ) are consistent with previous research, showing that emergence was not observed until participants received MEI.…”

“…Broadly speaking, the literature investigating the effects of MEI can be categorized into two subtypes: 1) studies aimed at establishing bidirectionality between speaker and listener repertoires, and 2) studies aimed at examining the utility of MEI in the development of more complex forms of generativity (e.g., taking dictation and intraverbal spelling) by establishing interdependence between verbal operants. Interpretation of this range of complexity is perhaps best described as a continuum, with the establishment of prerequisites (see Greer et al, ) for bidirectionality between speaker and listener repertoires lying at one end (i.e., its simplest level), and the emergence of more sophisticated operants (see Eby et al, , Luke, Greer, Singer‐Dudek, & Keohane, , and Speckman et al, ) lying at its opposite end (i.e., its most complex). A brief review of both research subtypes is provided below.…”

“…Thus, multiple exemplar training is utilized within both the stimulus equivalence and RFT approaches. When studying BiN ( Miguel, ), researchers used multiple exemplar instruction (MEI; e.g., Arntzen & Almas, ; Carroll & Hesse, ; Eby, Greer, Tullo, Baker, & Pauly, ; Greer, Stolfi, Chavez‐Brown, & Rivera‐ Valdes, ; Greer, Stolfi, & Pistoljevic, ; Olaff, Ona, & Holth, ; Speckman, Greer, & Rivera‐Valdes, ) to produce interdependence between speaker and listener repertoires, or between verbal operants within the same repertoire. What follows is a brief description of both MET and MEI and a short review of some of the research highlighting the use of both in producing generativity.…”

A translational approach to the functional analysis of language in psychotherapy

“…Verbal shaping may not only be relevant to the acquisition of new vocalizations or words, but also to the acquisition of complex verbal operants and response classes. For instance, verbal shaping has been used to encourage uttering specific types of nouns, pronouns, suffixes, verbs, or semantic categories (e.g., Speckman, Greer, & Rivera-Valdes, 2012 ). Many have suggested that verbal shaping may be an active component of psychotherapy ( Busch et al, 2009 , Virues-Ortega et al, 2011 ).…”

Evaluation of a preliminary method to examine antecedent and consequent contributions to noncompliance

“…If noncompliance is a function of a skill deficit, intervention options will be different than those for noncompliance that is a function of insufficient reinforcement. As an example, an appropriate intervention for noncompliance due to a skill deficit is to teach the necessary skill, perhaps using multiple exemplar training, prompting, and reinforcement (Speckman, Greer, & Rivera‐Valdes, ).…”