Written by B.F. Skinner, 1958, Soft Cover, 478 pages.

This book laid the foundation for the development of the PECS Training protocol. The book presents a systematic functional analysis of language based on the principles of learning. Skinner proposes that verbal behavior requires an analysis separate from other behavior because it does not operate on the environment directly, but rather through other people in a verbal community. He describes several parts of communication defined by their relationship to specific antecedents and consequences, from the simplest features of languages to its most complicated aspects. He also stresses that verbal behavior is defined by its function, not by its form-thus, for example, PECS permits any user to engage in verbal behavior. Read the chapter by Andy Bondy in the PECS Training Manual, Second Edition (page 4) for a thorough discussion on PECS and Verbal Behavior and attend our workshop: Using Verbal Behavior to Analyze Language and PECS.