A Molar View of Verbal Behavior

So far, verbal behavior has usually been analyzed in the molecular paradigm, which assumes stimuli lead to momentary discrete verbal responses on which consequences are contiguous. In attempts to explain instances of verbal behavior in which not all of those three components are observable, the molecular framework relies on an introduction of hypothetical internal stimuli, responses, or reinforcers. This questionable step can be avoided by treating verbal operants as temporally extended, which is also in accordance with the very nature of (verbal) behavior. This molar approach deals with the commerce of whole organisms with their environment. The particular size of a unit of analysis is determined by the research question. Trying to abstract small discrete units like tacts and mands and to look for their immediate or delayed reinforcement often leads to implausible explanations. In the molar view, verbal activities are regarded as nested, i.e. they are components of other (verbal) activities and consist of further smaller scale actions, all of which are parts of contingencies. Larger verbal episodes are viewed as wholes, induced by a context and correlating with consequences. Last but not least, the molar view offers a plausible account of the occurrence of mental- and private-event terms in an individuals’ verbal repertoire by suggesting that those are induced by the individuals’ observation of extended behavioral patterns.