Description of the Strategy

Securing the active involvement of the student whose behavior is targeted for change can significantly improve behavioral outcomes. Self-instructions, or, more simply, “talking to oneself,” are used by behavior analysts, teachers, counselors, or other educational personnel in programs of behavioral self-management or self-control.

People often talk to themselves, sometimes as a prompt that occurs before a behavioral event and sometimes after a response has been emitted. In the case of the former, a student might verbally rehearse the requirements for an assignment that will shortly be handed in, just to make sure that everything is correct and in the proper form. A student may review questions and answers that are expected to be on an upcoming test. Many people ...