Token Economies Have A Long History Of Being Identified As Evidence Based Practice

The Why Axis, written by behavioral economists Uri Gneezy and John List, introduce alternative experimentation to facilitate a deeper understanding of why everyday people behave in the way they do. This book attempts to illustrate the real underlying motivation of humans by using real world field tests/experimentations on people who are unaware they are being studied. One key discovery in this book is that self-interest lies at the root of human motivation. Once Gneezy and List establish what people truly value, money altruism, praise, relationships etc… they can acutely conclude the triggers needed to entice people to do better at something. The concept of correlation vs. causality is ascertained, where the authors plead for people

Reinforcement may be effective in encouraging people to perform relatively rote tasks, but most organizations require more complex forms of behavior to function. People must be

reward, or token from someone? This type of motivation is extrinsically motivated. I think most

According to Snowman & McCown, token economies are used to strengthen behavior. It is another type of behavior modification strategy that can be used with students to effectively promote good behavior within the classroom. Token economies are based upon a monetary system in which tokens are used to acquire desired reinforcers. A token is something that has little or no inherent value but that can be used to “purchase” items that do have inherent value (Snowman & McCown, 2012). Teachers will create a reinforcement menu which includes the items that can be “purchased” by tokens. Students will receive these tokens accordingly when they use the target behaviors appropriately. When students acquire a certain number of tokens for displaying good behavior, these can be exchanged for certain objects or activities in order to reinforce the

Positive reinforcement techniques is used to reinforce appropriate behavior among participants with ODD and ADHD.

CM utilizes operant conditioning to motivate particular behaviors through positive reward by motivation of a rewards. Types of incentives that are most popular in CM include Voucher Based Reinforcement (VBR) and Prize Incentives, a more cost effective way to gain a prize, lottery style. Both incentives reward positive goal oriented tasks such as drug free urine samples and consistency in attending counseling sessions. (NIDA, 2016). Studies conducted in methadone clinics and counseling treatment programs have reported that incentive-based interventions are highly effective in keeping clients abstinent from drugs and motivating client treatment retention (Petry and Carroll,

Only this time, there will be a reward and punishment system in the form of a token economy that should influence my behavior. During the conditioning trials period, (Monday, March 27th through Friday, April 14th weekdays only), I will follow the exact same procedures that I did the previous week. I will wake up at exactly 6:00 am when my alarm goes off, get out of bed, and note the date, time, and whether or not I accomplished the task successfully. However, this time the number of times and star stickers that indicate I successfully accomplish this task will matter more. If I successfully wake up at 6:00 am during each weekday session (five days in a row), I will reward myself by going to see a movie on the weekend. If I wake up on time only 4 out of the five weekday sessions, then I will reward myself with watching one movie on Netflix during the weekend. Going to the movies and watching a movie on Netflix will be positive reinforcement. If I fail to wake up on time for three days in a row during a specific conditioning week, then I will not watch any movie at all. Furthermore, I will not allow myself to access Netflix. This will be a negative punishment. Ultimately, the desired behavior of waking up at 6:00 am weekday mornings will be positively reinforced by the reward of getting to watch a movie on the weekend. Failure to wake up at 6:00 am for three or more weekdays will be negatively

Token economies have been used successfully to reduce the latency of responding to instructions; Buisson, Murdock, Reynolds and Cronin (1995) used a token economy to decrease the response latency for completing headings within a set time limit in hearing impaired children and Fjellstedt and Sulzer-Azároff (1973) used a token system to reduce latency of a student who did not follow directions in a given time limit. The children received tokens, which were paired to back up reinforcers contingent upon them being compliant and following directions within the time limit set.

Pink provides a well laid out case highlighting the gap between what science knows and what organizations do. Showcasing the mid-century work of Harry Harlow and Edward Deci , Pink explains how human motivation seems to run counter to what most scientists and citizens believe. For decades, we have believed that we know what motivates people: rewards. Rewards are supposed to intensify interest and enhance performance. But Harlow and Deci found different results. Deci wrote, “When money is used as an external reward for some activity, the subjects lose intrinsic interest for the activity.” Like a shot of espresso, rewards can give you a jolt of energy, but the boost wears out, moreover, it can erode a person’s longer-term motivation to engage in the task. As we continue to incentivize our staff and students,

In the classroom we can encourage certain behaviours through reinforcement i.e. golden time, reward charts, stickers and praise. In a special educational needs environment token economies are often used to help children and adults to learn sets of behaviour to enable them to learn socially acceptable behaviour in preparation for later life. This allows for reinforcement to be given immediately on the correct

The researchers chose the backup reinforcers by choosing the highly preferred edible items used during the multiplestimulus-without-replacement (MSWO) preference assessments. The first client, Annie, had to make seven correct responses to receive the backup enforcer; while James, the second client, had to make three correct responses. The individuals were verbally instructed to begin the task, and once the task was completed, they would be given access to the primary reinforcer. James’s results showed that he maintained effectiveness for the token economy as well as for the primary reinforcement. Annie’s results showed that her response in the token condition was lower than in the primary reinforcement condition. The researchers concluded that motivation and reinforcing effects limited the student responses and should be evaluated for future

One of the most common and well executed behavioral learning theories in the classroom is ABA - Applied Behavioral Analysis. In ABA undesirable behaviors are extinguished by removing reinforcement when that behavior is exhibited, thereby allowing the learner to modify their behavior (Ormrod, 2016, p. 85). Targeted behaviors are reinforced, and antecedent strategies, as well as consequences are devised based up on the learner. Treatment plans are developed and modified as the student learns and modifies their behavior (Ormrod, 2016, pp. 91-94). Token reinforcement, or token economy, is often used to encourage students to work towards modifying their behavior and acquiring new skills (Ormrod, 2016, p. 97). A classroom of students can be reinforced

The PBIS framework provides behavior supports through essential strategies that enhance academics and social outcomes in schools, (Responsive Classroom and PBIS Can Schools Use Them Together, n.d). According to the Office of Special Education Programs Technical Assistance Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, OSEP TA Center on PBIS (2013) it is reported that school-wide PBIS has been implemented in 50 states and over 19,000 schools across the United States. Hence, the PBIS framework is a structure that provides a strong foundation in positive discipline. Using positive discipline and positive reinforcement centers the attention on desired outcomes and redirection. Some of the strategies include a focus on skill teaching, the use of positive statements through respectful practices, data-based decision making and the implementation of three tiers of positive behavior support to meet the variety of student needs. Tier one is intended to support all students in all situations (Responsive Classroom and PBIS Can Schools Use Them Together, n.d). This is done through the use of common language, positive reinforcements, frequent verbal connections of behavior to expectation, morning and closing classroom meetings, logical consequences and problem-solving

Incentives are seen everywhere in daily life and they appear in a variety of ways. Whether a person is making a choice between what to eat for lunch or when to go to bed, they are being influence by incentives. For example, images of an appealing lunch meal in a TV commercial may make someone choose Subway over Mcdonalds. However, the same thought process can motivate someone to prefer a meal at McDonalds because of the company’s constant promotion of their “dollar menu” (Mcdonalds, 2013). Either of these incentives can appeal to a person, depending on what they are motivated by, in this case, either health or money.

In this case analysis we shall be examining the unintended contradictory results that reward systems bring about and recommendations in solving the issues highlighted