Of course, measuring the antecedent event in addition to all components of the behavioral operant, as well as conducting intervention research in the natural setting, presents many challenges for researchers.
Due to measurement issues, however, it may be difficult to generalize the findings of this research without knowing which component of the operant was responsible for the changes in the challenging behavior.
A simple answer is that the verbal behaviors of a patient or subject do not cease to be operants, governed by all the variables involved in operant behavior, when the person becomes a patient or an experimental subject.
Consider instruction designed to teach students the aforementioned distinction between operants and respondents.
