dealing with offenders - token economy

• behaviour modification

  a therapeutic technique used to increase or decrease the frequencies of behaviour using operant conditioning
• operant conditioning

  learning through reinforcement or punishment, if a behaviour is followed by a desirable consequence, then that behaviour is more likely to occur
• token economy

  a form of therapy where desirable behaviours are encouraged by the use of selective reinforcements. Rewards are given as secondary reinforcers when individuals engage in correct behaviours. These can be exchanged for primary reinforcers
• Allyon and Azrin (1961)

  • developed the token economy system
  • the unlearning of undesirable behaviour is possible by reinforcing obedience and punishing disobedience
  • desirable behaviours are rewarded with tokens, which can be exchanged for rewards, such as cigarettes
  • based on 3 principles

  o   reinforcement

  o   punishment

  o   shaping
• reinforcement

  • this involves reinforcement of new behaviours
  • prisoners are given tokens when they perform desirable behaviours such as making their bed or obeying others
  • these tokens can be used to buy goods of their choice
  • items purchased act as primary reinforcers, increasing the likelihood of the desirable behaviour being repeated
• punishment

  if undesirable behaviour is observed, tokens can be removed as a form of punishment
• shaping

  • a process by which tokens are given behaviours that progressively become more complex
  • this happens by reinforcing successive improvements of behaviour
  • this is a process whereby the tokens are given for progressive behaviours that are unique to an individual, rather than the same reward for all
• Hobbs and Holt - aim

  to reduce inappropriate school behaviour before and after dinner when lining up
• Hobbs and Holt - procedure

  • Alabama Boys Industrial School- state training school for adolescent delinquents (ages 12-15)
  • staff had 3-4 hours of extensive training, then twice weekly over three months
  • identify and target behaviours, discuss methods of observations, recording data and work out logistical issues
  • 125 delinquent males- observed in 4 cottages
  • one of the cottages was a control groups with no tokens
  • baseline data from all cottages was collected before tokens
  • data was collected by recording behaviour on a daily chart
• Hobbs and Holt - procedure p2

  • two supervisors recorded what each boy did in categories

  o   following instructions from the supervisor

  o   completing chores, following rules (before dinner)

  o   interacting with peers 30-50% of the times (defined as less than 3 feet away, talking and looking peer, body facing peer)

  o   line behaviour- walking in a straight line

  o   inappropriate behaviour was scored if any assaultive behaviour shown (swearing, threats, hitting)

  • boys were informed of targes criteria, and how many tokens they could earn in each category
  • each day, the boys were told how many tokens they had earned, and they were given a piece of paper with this information
  • they were taken to a token economy store each week where they could buy drinks, sweets, toys and cigarettes. They could also save tokens and use them for more expensive activities- such as home visits or a baseball game
• Hobbs and Holt - findings

  • data was collected over 14 months
  • for each cottage, the baseline mean percentage for pro social behaviours before tokens was collected

  o   cottage 1- 66%

  o   cottage 2- 47%

  o   cottage 3- 73%

  • and collected after tokens

  o   cottage 1- 91%

  o   cottage 2- 81%

  o   cottage 3- 94%

  • average increase of 27%
  • the control group, showed no increase in the same period of time
• advantages over other methods of rehab (strength)

  • token economy is easily understood and therefore easy to implement
  • prison staff can increase desirable behaviours
  • this can lead to an improvement of prison environment for both staff and prisoners
  • however, staff should be involved in planning and must remain consistent
• success of token economies in custody

  • the token economy system has been proven a success for schools dealing with autism (Tarbox et al, 2006)
  • however, it has been less successful in prison populations
  • Burchard and Lane (1982) found that token economy was widely being used in nearly all states in the US in the 1970s
  • socially approved behaviours were enhanced, criminal behaviours diminished
  • use in the UK was limited to young offender institutions
• can the RE have long term benefits (limitation)

  • can an offender learn through token economy and apply their learning when they leave prison
  • research suggests that TE has little effects on re-offending rates (Moyes et al 1985)
  • once rewards cease, the stimulus response link is extinguished. Plus, the behaviour learned may not be applicable to the real world outside of prison
• individual differences

  • young offenders- programmes have been reasonably successful
  • violent offenders- much less success
  • Cohen and Filipcjak (1971)- juvenile delinquents who had been trained with a token economy system were less likely to reoffend after one year
  • Rice et al (1990)- studied 92 men is a psychiatric hospital and found that 50% of men treated in this way re-offended
• ethical issues

  • violation of human rights?
  • if behaviour is being manipulated, sometimes without their agreement, this can violate human rights
  • if someone cannot control their behaviour, they would not earn any token and therefore denied of privileges or even necessities
• success depends on timing

  • one weakness of the token economy system is that it’s only effective if the tokens are given immediately after the desired behaviour has occurred
  • the longer the interval between the behaviour and the token the less likely it is that learning will take place