May 15, 2016

May 15, 2016

Written by Maximus Peperkamp, M.S. Verbal Engineer

Dear Reader,

The Spring Semester is coming to an end and I am delighted to read the many beautiful papers my students have written.  During the seventeen weeks that have passed I have explained and revisited the Sound Verbal Behavior (SVB)/Noxious Verbal Behavior (NVB) distinction many times. All my students understand it, relate to it and write about it. One Extra Credit Assignment starts with the sentence “When I listen to the sound of my voice while I speak then…..” I am moved and fascinated by what my students are telling me. Their papers are the proof that SVB and NVB are real phenomena and that this distinction, once explained, becomes meaningful to everyone. Even students, who hardly say anything during class, who otherwise are very reserved, pour their hearts out in this paper. It is so rewarding to read the accumulative effects of a semester of teaching and to know that my students value exploring this topic. One common theme is that SVB is easier achieved alone than with others. It is like that when one first learns about it. As they experiment with it more often, it will become easier to have SVB with others. Ultimately, that is what SVB is for, but as this is only their introduction to it, they acknowledge that unless one knows and explores how to have SVB by oneself, one is incapable of having it with others. This self-experimentation transforms the way they view themselves and their relationships with others. Their writings make me realize how important this self-experimentation is. If I had not dared to experiment the way I did, I would have never discovered it. My history was such that I kept experimenting with it because there was nothing else I was good at. Nobody has explained SVB to me and I figured it out on my own. Students often write they have never listened to themselves. Another recurring theme is the acknowledgement of feelings of shame that we have when we recognize that our public speech and our private speech is mainly consisting of NVB. Along with this develops an awareness that NVB is very common and that unless we reinforce SVB ourselves, nobody else will.