'Words...substitute'

'In any verbal scenario, as Naour (2009) points out, affirmative 'words can substitute for the actual [physical, body-to-body] contact comfort such as mother to child.  In short order, in such scenarios words become powerful as secondary reinforcers to condition new behavior or to sustain formerly acquired behavior.'  (10)  This behavior can include new and sustained use of [a particular] phrase by individuals within [particular language-using] groups.'

-XJ, ​p. 96