The phenomenon identified as naming is a key stage of language function that is missing in many children with autism and other language delay diagnoses. We identified four children with autism, who, prior to the implementation of this experiment, did not have the naming repertoire (either speaker to listener or listener to speaker) and who had no tact responses for two- or three-dimensional stimuli. Tact training alone did not result in a naming repertoire or echoic-to-tact responses for these students. We then provided multiple exemplar instruction (MEI) across speaker and listener repertoires for a subset of stimuli (the teaching set) that resulted in untaught response components of naming and the capability to acquire naming after learning tacts for subsequent sets of stimuli. We used a delayed multiple-baseline probe design with stimuli counterbalanced across participants. The results showed that for all four students, mastery of tacts alone (the baseline or initial training condition) was not sufficient for the naming or echoic-to-tact repertoires to emerge. Following MEI the naming repertoire emerged for all four students for the initial set of stimuli. In addition, we tested for naming with novel stimuli that were probed prior to the MEI and naming also emerged following tact instruction alone for these sets. The results are discussed in terms of the role of naming in the incidental acquisition of verbal functions as part of the speaker-as-own-listener repertoire.

Children with limited vocal verbal repertoires often benefit from the use of alternative forms of communication. Learning the sets of skills needed to use static and/or dynamic communication systems may result in improved communication for some individuals who lack vocal verbal capabilities. In order to teach many of the skills within these sets of repertoires, hundreds of learning opportunities that target multiple units of language are required. One male student, 8.1 years of age at onset, participated in this teaching protocol study. This student was selected for inclusion based on his limited verbal (including vocal and motor) skills. The participant's repertoires were limited to mands (requests) by pointing to preferred items during instructional sessions. Baseline data showed that this student had fewer than 20 tacts (comments) and intraverbal (answers) repertoires. Using picture icons, the participant was taught over a 1 ½ year period using a multiple-component treatment protocol that consisted of instruction in match-to-sample, point to stimuli, and tact stimuli (i.e., Multiple Exemplar Instruction) for two word combinations for more than 100 units of language. Postintervention data showed the teaching protocol presented resulted in an increase in verbal behavior with a decrease in maladaptive behaviors.