The Northern Michigan University psychology department will host a presentation titled “Teaching Complex Verbal Operants to Children with Autism.” Jacob Daar, an assistant professor candidate from Southern Illinois University, will give the talk. The event begins at 3 p.m. Friday, Jan. 22, in West Science 3808. It is free and open to the public.  

Children with autism often show marked deficits in communication and language skills. While traditional behavior analytic approaches to language acquisition have consistently produced gains in functional communication and basic language learning behaviors, deficits in more complex and generative forms of language, such as variable responding and inference, remain an area of need. Daar will also present a series of studies demonstrating the utility of procedures designed to promote the emergence of complex and generative verbal responses.

For more information, please contact the psychology department at 227-2935.