behaviour modification Flashcards
what is the aim
The aim of this is to effectively manage and monitor offenders during their sentence as well as reduce the likelihood that they will reoffend.
what is token economy and how is it installed
Token economy is a type of behaviour modification based on operant conditioning. It involves reinforcing desirable behaviours with a token that can then be exchanged for some kind of reward e.g. go to anger management, get a tv. Tokens are secondary reinforces because they derive their value from their association with the reward, which are the primary reinforces, as they are directly rewarding. Non-compliance or disobedience may result in the tokens, and the associated privileges, being withheld or removed (punishment).
Target behaviours must be operationalised by breaking them down into ‘units’ of behaviour which are objective and measurable and have been agreed with prison staff and inmates in advance. For example, the target behaviour may be to improve positive interactions with other inmates e.g. playing game with other inmates
Staff and prisoners should be made aware of a scoring system and how much each particular behaviour is ‘worth’. Behaviours are hierarchical as some are regarded as more demanding than others so receive greater rewards.
Finally, it is important that prison staff are given training to implement token economy successfully so that the procedure is standardised and that all staff are rewarding behaviours in the same way.
evaluation
RESEARCH SUPPORT
P - one strength of token economy is that there is evidence to support it
E - Hobbs and Holt (1976) introduced a token economy programme with groups of young offenders across three behavioural units (and a fourth unit acted as ‘control’). 125 delinquent males were observed in 4 cottages, with one cottage being a control group where the boys didn’t receive tokens. Two observers recorded what each boy did in a number of categories, for example; following cottage rules such as no smoking. They observed a significant difference in positive behaviour in the 3 cottages compared to the non-token economy group, with an average increase of 27%, whereas the control group showed no increase.
E - this suggests that token economy systems do work
COUNTERPOINT
However, the success of such systems does depend on a consistent approach from prison staff. Bassett and Blanchard found any benefits were lost if staff applied the techniques inconsistently. According to the researchers, this was due to factors such as lack of appropriate staff training or high staff turnover. This suggests that behaviour modification schemes must ensure full and consistent staff participation if they are to work.
EASY TO IMPLEMENT
P - Another strength of behaviour modification is that it is relatively straightforward to set up in custody.
E - The appeal of behaviour modification (e.g. token economies) rests largely upon the ease with which it can be administered. There is no need for a specialist professional to be involved as there would be for other forms of treatment such as anger management. Rather, token economy systems can be designed and implemented by virtually anyone in any institution. They are also cost-effective and easy to follow once workable methods of reinforcement have been established.
E - This suggests that behaviour modification techniques can be established in most prisons and accessed by most prisoners.
LITTLE REHABILITATION VALUE
P - One limitation of behaviour modification is that it may not affect long-term behaviour.
E - Any positive changes in behaviour that may occur whilst an offender is in prison may be quickly lost when they are released. More cognitive-based treatments, such as anger management, may be more likely to lead to permanent behavioural change. Such treatments require the offender to understand the cause of their offending and to take responsibility for their own rehabilitation. In contrast, offenders can fairly easily play along with a token economy system in order to access the rewards, but this produces little change in their overall character.
E - This may explain why, once the token economy is discontinued, an offender may quickly regress back to their former behaviour.
