token economy

Question 1

what is the difference between a primary and secondary reinforcer

Answer 1

1) anything which gives pleasure such as food or comfort, or something which removes an unpleasant state= they don’t require learning to provide a reinforcing value
2) reinforcers which initially have no value to the individual but gain their reinforcing properties as a result of being paired with a primary reinforcer such as tokens given out when a target behaviour is done

Question 2

outline how token economy works

Answer 2

1) tokens are paired with a primary reinforcer, rewarding stimuli, allowing them to become secondary reinforcers
2) a patient engages with a target behaviour or educed inappropriate ones
3) patient is given tokens for engaging in said behaviours
4) the patient trades the tokens for desirable items or other privilege

Question 3

what is the aim of token economy

Answer 3

that the patient will engage more often with desirable behaviours as the behaviours become associated with rewards and privileges

Question 4

outline how classical conditioning is used to assign value to the tokens

Answer 4

it acts as a neutral stimulus, being repeatedly presented with the reinforcing stimulus such as watching a movie, by pairing the neutral token with the reinforcing stimulus it requires reinforcing properties and becomes a secondary reinforcer

Question 5

outline the importance of the trade of token economy

Answer 5

the effectiveness of the technique may decrease if there is a gap between presentation of the token and exchange of the reinforcers such as food or a movie

Question 6

evaluate token economy

Answer 6

1) research support- review of 13 studies of token economy systems in treatment of schizophrenia, 11 found beneficial effects that were directly associated to the use of token economies. It was concluded that overall these studies provide evidence that token economy is effective in increasing adaptive behaviours with patients with schizophrenia. However there were many significant methodological issues which limited the impact of overall assessment in context
2) critical evidence- an issue with assessing effectives as studies tend to be uncontrolled- when a token economy system is introduced into a ward, typically all patients are brought in rather than an experimental group which participates and a control group which doesn’t. As a result improvements can only be compared to past behaviours which may be misleading as other factors such as increased staff attention may contribute to improvements
2) research methods- ethical concerns- in order to make reinforcement effective clinicians must exercise control over primary reinforcers such as food and privacy, Patients may exchange tokens if they display these behaviours, however it is generally accepted that all humans have basic rights such as food and privacy that cant be violated regardless of positive consequences that may be achieved by manipulation
4) issue and debate- nature vs nurture