Naming, story-telling, and problem-solving: Critical elements in the development of language and cognition.

08/01/2025 | PAXIS Institute |

In the current article, we present the three pillars of Relational Frame Theory: relational frames, relational networks, and abstraction from and transformation of the non-arbitrary environment, with the examples of naming, story telling, and problem-solving, respectively. The main thesis of the current paper is that these processes are necessary for a complete behavioral account of the development of language and cognition because so much of human behavior is verbal, at least in part. The paper describes the overlap between the three pillars to illustrate the synergistic interaction in their development and the extent to which Relational Frame Theory is a developmental account of verbal behavior as a dynamical system. With a relatively limited array of interactive psychological processes, it is argued that Relational Frame Theory allows complex verbal events, such as story-telling and problem-solving, to be approached behaviorally and developmentally.

Citation: Barnes-Holmes Y & Barnes-Holmes D. 2002. Naming, story-telling, and problem-solving: Critical elements in the development of language and cognition. Behavioral Development Bulletin, 11, 34-38.

Recent Posts

Categories