Dysfunctional control by client verbal behavior: The context of reason-giving

Dysfunctional control exerted by reason-giving in adult psychopathology is interpreted from a radical behavioral perspective. Verbal-social contingencies which support the establishment of reason-giving and its control over maladaptive actions are reviewed. A contextual approach to psychotherapy, comprehensive distancing, which attempts to weaken dysfunctional verbal control is described briefly. Data relevant to therapeutic process are presented. The overall results suggest that comprehensive distancing facilitates therapeutic change through a process consistent with a behavioral analysis of reason-giving. Suggestions for further research and radical behavioral approaches to psychotherapy are discussed.

     

Rule-following and human operant responding: Conceptual and methodological considerations

A conceptual analysis of rule-governed behavior, emphasizing pliance and tracking as functional classes of rule-following, is provided and related to previous methodological strategies in human operant research. A novel strategy, which utilizes a microcomputer to reinforce correspondences between subject guesses and responding, is proposed for the study of rule-following. Results from a preliminary demonstration of the procedures are reported briefly, and possible applications to the further analysis of rule-following are discussed.