Behaviour Modification in Custody

• how is a strength of behaviour modification it being easy to implement?

  - it is a cost-effective strategy that does not require the presence of a professional and can be implemented by practically anyone due to being easy to follow- is a practical and useful strategy, meaning it is fit for its designed purposes
• how does Blackburn criticise behaviour modification?

  - criticises for having 'little rehabilitative value' due to the changes in behaviour in prison that occur due to behaviour modification may quickly be lost upon release where they are not receiving tokens for desirable behaviour
• how do Bassett + Blanchard criticise behaviour modification?


  - found all benefits of behaviour modification were lost if applied inconsistently by staff, - suggesting that these schemes require full and consistent staff participants if they are to be effective
• how does field et al support behaviour modification?

  also found token economies to be effective in HMYOIs, especially when the rewards were more frequent and immediate
• how does Holt + Hobbs support behaviour modification?

  - implemented token economies in 3 HMYOIs + recorded a 4th (control)- they found that there was a significant increase in positive behaviour in the token economies groups when compared to the control
• what are the steps to designing a token economy?

  1. operationalise target behaviours by breaking behaviour into component parts / units. Must be objective, measurable + agreed in advance with staff and inmates

  2. scoring system : staff + inmates must be aware of it and how many tokens each behaviour is worth. Need a behaviour hierarchy. Gendreau et al recommends reward outweighs punishment 4:1

  - train staff : could be several hours for numerous weeks

  - procedure needs to be standardised and recorded effectively e.g. giving rewards for tokens
• what is a token economy?

  - the most common type of behaviour modification programme

  - operant conditioning principles to encourage desirable behaviours over undesirable behaviours

  - told what desirable behaviours are - prisoners are given a token each time they perform desirable behaviour - tokens are able to be exchanged for a reward (primary reinforcers)

  - tokens = secondary reinforcers - not inherently rewarding but have value to to association with rewards

  - tokens + rewards are withheld when prisoners do not comply (punishment)
• what is behaviour modification in custody?

  - applies behaviourist operant conditioning principles to treating offending behaviour during a custodial sentence through systems of reward and punishment - aims to replace undesirable behaviour with desirable behaviours throughout the use of reinforcement