Behaviour Modification

Question 1

What is behaviour modification?

Answer 1

Applies behaviourist operant conditioning principles to treating offending behaviourduring a custodial sentence through systems of reward and punishment. Aims to replace undesirable behaviours through the use of reinforcement

Question 2

Describe the procedure of token economies

Answer 2

-Selective use of operant conditioning principles to encourage desirable behaviours over undesirable behaviours
-Prisoners are told what the desirable behaviours are and that non-compliance will have consequences
-Prisoners are given a token each time they perform a desirable behaviour or according to reinforcement schedules
-Tokens are able to be exchanged for a reward (primary reinforcer) (operant/positive conditioning)
-Tokens are secondary reinforcers as they aren’t inherently rewarding but have value due to association with rewards
-Tokens and rewards are withheld when prisoners don’t comply (punishment?

Question 3

What punishment would be implemented in the token economy?

Answer 3

Tokens and therefore rewards are withheld when prisoners comply.

This would lead to negative reinforcement as the prisoners would behave well in order to avoid the punishment

Question 4

What are the three steps to designing a token economy?

Answer 4

Operationalise target behaviours- breaking down behaviour into component parts/units. Must be objective, measurable and agreed in advance with staff and inmates

Scoring system- staff and inmates must be aware of it and how many tokens each behaviour is worth through a behaviour hierarchy

Train staff- could be several hours for numerous weeks as the procedure needs to be standardised and recorded effectively

Question 5

What research support has token economies got?

Answer 5

Holt and Hobbs implemented token economies in 3 HMYOIs and recorded a 4th (control) and found that there was a significant increase in positive behaviour in the token economies groups when compared to the control

Question 6

How is it a limitation that the effectiveness depends on a consistent approach by all staff members?

Answer 6

Bassett and Blanchard found all benefits of behaviour modification were lost if applied inconsistently by staff, suggesting that these schemes require full and consistent staff participation for effective results

Question 7

How is it a strength that token economies are easy to implement?

Answer 7

-A cost effective strategy that doesn’t require the presence of a professional and can be implemented by practically anyone due to being easy to follow

Question 8

How is it a limitation that it may not fully rehabilitate?

Answer 8

Behaviour modification may quickly be lost upon release where they are not receiving tokens for desirable behaviour