Establishing a token economy program in a state hospital classroom: A lesson in training student and teacher

Abstract

The goals of this study were to establish a program in a state hospital classroom in order to: (A) increase appropriate study behavior; (B) increase the quantity and quality of work output; and (C) train the regular classroom teacher so that he could eventually administer the program on his own. A 4-day-a-week token economy program was set up for the teacher's most disruptive class. The program lasted 15 weeks and consisted of three treatment and two baseline phases. During each subsequent treatment phase, the delay between earning points and cashing the points in for backup reinforcers was increased. Students were observed and reinforced twice during each study period (and additionally reinforced after the study period during certain treatment phases). Reinforcers used to initiate and sustain desired behaviors consisted of social approval, points, toys, and candies. Extinction and time-out procedures were used in conjunction with positive reinforcement to reduce disruptive behaviors. Results indicate that appropriate study behavior and quantity of work output increased significantly in the reinforced treatment phases as compared to the baseline phases. However, the last treatment phase of the study is significantly lower in terms of quality of work output as compared to the other four phases. Problems encountered during the study, what factors may have accounted for the decrease in the quality of work output, and how a program of this type might be made even more effective are discussed.