behavioural modification Flashcards
intro
Behaviour modification is one of several schemes that may form part of a custodial sentence.
The aim is to effectively manage and monitor offenders during their sentence and reduce the likelihood of reoffending.
According to the behaviourist approach all human behaviour is learnt.
In which case it should be possible to encourage the unlearning of behaviour.
Behaviour modification programs are designed with the aim of reinforcing obedient behaviour in offenders whilst pushing disobedience/undesirable behaviour.
reward=repeating
punishment=extinction
token economy
Behaviour modification programs such as token economies are based on operant conditioning i.e. rewarding desirable behaviour.
• Avoiding confrontation, following rules, keeping your cell tidy etc.
In a token economy, prisoners are given a token every time they perform a desirable behaviour.
Behaviours and rewards are made clear to the prisoner before the program is implemented.
Non-compliance or disobedience may result in the tokens being with
withheld or removed = punishment
Tokens are secondary reinforcers because they have no value in themselves.
The tokens can be exchanged for a primary reinforcer e.g phone call to a loved one, time in the gym or exercise yard extra cigarettes or food.
designing and using a token economy
Operationalising target behaviours.
• Break it down into component parts
- The units of behaviour should be measurable and objective, and agreed by all parties in advance
Scoring System
-Staff and prisoners made aware of the scoring system.
-Behaviours are hierarchical - some receive greater rewards.
• Some systems award tokens directly; others may award points.
-Reinforcement should outnumber punishments by a ratio of 4:1 (Gendreau et al. 2011)
Training
• Procedures should be standardised so that all prison staff are awarding the same behaviours in the same way.
S-research support
One strength of behaviour modification in custody is that it has evidence to support its effectiveness.
• Hobbs and Holt (1976) Introduced a token economy program with groups of young offenders across three behavioural units and one control.
• They observed a significant difference in positive behaviour compared to the non-token economy group.
• Field at et (2004) also found a token economy program used with young people with behavioural problems was generally effective, although there were still a number of young people who did not respond.
• Later these youths were placed on a special program where the rewards were more immediate and more frequent which lead to more positive results.
However the success of such systems depends on a consistent approach from prison staff.
- Bassett and Blanchard (1977) found that benefits were lost if staff applied the techniques inconsistently.
- Something that happens quite a lot, according to researchers due to factors such as inappropriate staff training or high staff turnover.
All of this research suggests that behaviour modification systems can work well, but will only do so if full and consistent staff participation is ensured.
S-easy to implement
Another strength of behaviour modification is that it is relatively straightforward to set up and run in custody.
• No need for specialist professionals to be involved as they would be for other forms of treatment.
- Token economy systems can be designed and implemented by virtually anyone in the institution.
• Cost-effective
- Easy to follow once systems have been established.
This suggests that behaviour modification techniques can be established in most prisons and accessed by most prisoners
L-little rehabilitative value
One limitation of behaviour modification is that it may not affect long-term behaviour.
• Blackburn (1993) suggests that any positive changes in behaviour made whilst in prison would quickly be lost when prisoners are released.
• Token economy systems do not require the offender to understand the cause of their offending and take responsibility for their rehabilitation.
• It is easy to fake it and play along in a token economy system in order to get the rewards.
• Doesn’t change overall character.
This could explain why, once the token economy is discontinued, and offender may quickly regress back to former habits and maybe cognitive based treatments, such as anger management would be more successful.
6 marker
Behaviour modification programmes are designed to manage offenders whilst in custody and reduce the likelihood of reoffending after being released. Such programmes are based on the behaviourist approach and aim to encourage the learning and unlearning of specific behaviours via the receiving of rewards.
An example of a behaviour modification programme used in custody is token economy systems. This involves prisoners receiving a reward token for desirable behaviours. The behaviours in questions are always determined beforehand and are operationalised e.g. avoiding confrontation may be broken up into many smaller, measurable and observable behaviours, such as speaking politely to others. Prisoners are then able to exchange their tokens for tangible rewards, such as phone calls or extra time in the yard. It is also possible for tokens to be removed or withheld in response to undesirable behaviours.
The token is a secondary reinforcer, because it has no value in itself, but rather gains value through its association with a primary reinforcer, e.g. extra phone calls.
Aside from operationalising target behaviours, successful token economy systems ensure both staff and prisoners must also be aware of the scoring system and how many tokens various behaviours are worth (some will be worth more than others).
Finally, success relies on standardised procedures so that all members of staff are awarding rewards in the same way. For this training is essential.
