THE ROLE OF VERBAL BEHAVIOR IN HUMAN LEARNING: III. INSTRUCTIONAL EFFECTS IN CHILDREN

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Abstract
Lever pressing of children from three age groups (2½ to 4, 5 to 6½, and 7½ to 9 years) could produce reinforcers according to a fixed‐interval 40‐s schedule: (1) Some were instructed to respond at a high rate, others at a low rate, and (2) they were subsequently taught to provide their own spoken self‐instructions consonant with the earlier, experimenter‐supplied instructions. All subjects who received high‐rate instructions responded at a steady, high rate, which was maintained following self‐instructional training. The effects of low‐rate instructions were directly related to the age of the children. The two older groups produced low‐rate patterns, with the oldest children responding at very low rates; effects were least noticeable in the youngest age group. Following self‐instructional training, all three groups showed adult‐like low‐rate behavior and the oldest children showed an improved ability to estimate the interval length. The results provide further evidence of the importance of language as a determinant of human behavior.

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