Getting the Right Answer Isn’t Enough: Establishing Speaker–Listener Repertoires for Complex Learning

Learners may follow multi-step instructions, complete worksheets, or answer comprehension questions correctly—yet performance often collapses when prompts fade, delays increase, or task demands shift during novel tasks. Accurate responding does not necessarily indicate functional problem solving. In many cases, the controlling variables reflect restricted stimulus control rather than established speaker–listener mediation. This presentation examines verbal mediation and joint control as critical teaching tools in moving learners from basic skills into complex learning. Joint control occurs when a rehearsed verbal operant and a tact jointly evoke a response under shared topographical control. Participants will analyze how self-echoic rehearsal, tacting, and intraverbal responding interact to support responding across delay, distance, and novelty. Emphasis will be placed on identifying missing prerequisite repertoires, establishing overt verbal mediation, and transferring control to covert mediation. Applications will include multi-step instructions, mediated selection, recalling past events, and reading comprehension—supporting more durable and generative repertoires.

1. 11. Define joint control as the onset of joint stimulus control over a common response topography and distinguish it from simple listener responding 2. Analyze learner performance to determine whether correct responding reflects mediated problem solving or restricted stimulus control. 3. Identify prerequisite repertoires (e.g., self-echoic, tact, listener, and mixed operants) necessary for establishing functional speaker–listener interactions. 4. Design instructional procedures that establish overt verbal mediation and systematically transfer responding to covert mediation. 5. Apply joint control procedures to teach a variety of skills including multi-step instructions, mediated selection, listing, and early academic problem-solving tasks.