Verbal Behavior Therapy
Overview
Focus
Specific Skills
- Oral language skills
- Vocabulary
Program Length
Unspecified
Program Description
"Verbal Behavior (VB) therapy teaches communication and language. It is based on the principles of Applied Behavior Analysis and the theories of behaviorist B.F. Skinner. This approach encourages people with autism to learn language by connecting words with their purposes. The student learns that words can help them get desired objects or results. Verbal Behavior therapy does not focus on words as labels only (cat, car, etc.). Rather, it teaches why we use words and how they are useful in making requests and communicating ideas."
Visit Program WebsiteCost
Unspecified
Demographics & Delivery
Intended Population
- Intensified intervention
Grade
- Unspecified
Intended Group Size
- Individual
ELL/DLL
- Unspecified
Multisensory Applications
- Unspecified
Computer-Based Delivery
- None
Scripted
- None
Program Specifics
Comprehensive or Skill Specific
- Skill Specific
Placement Tests
- No
Accelerated Learning
- No
Assessment to Monitor Skills Mastery
- Unspecified
Error Correction Built In
- Unspecified
Fidelity Measures Provided by Publisher
- Unspecified
Research & Evaluation
Research Summary
A 2006 review of 60 published studies concluded that Verbal Behavior Therapy helps many children with autism develop spoken language. The same review noted a lack of evidence on whether the approach produces broader benefits in daily living skills and overall improved outcomes.
Study Citations
Sautter, R. A., & Leblanc, L. A. (2006). Empirical Applications of Skinner's Analysis of Verbal Behavior with Humans. The Analysis of verbal behavior, 22(1), 35–48. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03393025
Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)
- Mixed evidence