TOKEN ECONOMIES

Question 1

AO1 token eco
Intro

Answer 1

-behaviourist approach to manage b of pt with sz
-mainly used with pt who spent long in hospital nd developed maladaptive b (institutionalised)
-Such as bad hygiene or lack of communication with others

AIM= change pt behaviour so they easier to manage, will have better quality of life nd thus enabling them to live outside of hospital setting

Question 2

How it works?
AO1

Answer 2

• use SKINNERS operant conditioning principles of positive reinforcement
  -pt receive in form of tokens such as coloured discs, immediately after producing desired b e.g self care
  -token layer exchanged for goods e.g watching tv or sweets

Question 3

Think further

Answer 3

-token are secondary reinforcers
-these are not rewarding by themselves
-however the pt learn to associate with meaningful rewards e.g sweets ( primary reinforcemers)

-in Oder token to be secondary reinforcers need to be paired with primary

Question 4

LIMITATION AO3

Answer 4

P- limited evidence to support effectiveness

E-review of 3 studies investigating use of token eco found there was limited impact on management of pt with sz only one of the 3. Studies showed any improvement in symp nd no significant positive change in maladaptive b

E-shows using operant cond may not be the most effective method of creating positive b change in sz

L- therefore casting doubt on effectiveness nd lowering internal val of token eco as a management tech for sz