Stimulus equivalence in rudimentary reading and spelling

Abstract

Severely retarded boys entered this study already able to match colored patches to dictated color words and to name the colors orally. Initially they were unable to match printed color words with the colored patches or to their dictated names; neither could they name the printed words orally. Programs were designed to teach the boys to use individual anagram letters to construct the appropriate colors words when shown color patches. After learning the visual equivalences between colors and printed words, the boys demonstrated auditory reading-comprehension (matching printed words to dictated words) and oral reading (naming printed words).