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Results for “Token Economy”

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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1976

The cellblock token economy: token reinforcement procedures in a maximum security correctional institution for adult male felons.

Two experiments were conducted (1) to explore the application of token reinforcement procedures in a maximum security correctional institution for adult male felons and (2) to determine to what extent the reinforcement procedures disrupted the day-to-day lives of inmate participants. In Experiment 1, an expanded reversal design revealed that the combination of praise and token reinforcement was more effective than the combinations of praise and noncontingent token award or direct commands on four common institutional activities. The latter two combinations were not found to be any more effective than praise alone. Experiment 2, which also employed a reversal design, indicated that the high levels of performance observed during the token reinforcement phases of Experiment 1 could be attained without subjecting participants to undue hardship in the form of increased deprivation of either social intercourse or the opportunity to engage in recreational and entertainment activities. Client safeguards are discussed in detail.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed1978

Results of a token economy.

A token economy for chronic psychiatric patients (average hospital stay of ten years) is reported. One hundred seventy-four patients were treated. Follow-up data were obtained on 173 patients who had been discharged from the hospital for an average of three years at the time of follow-up. One hundred twenty-five patients completed the program, which featured a graduated method for shaping behavior (functional levels). Ninety-one of the 125 patients who completed the program and were living in the community were employed. The program was most effective with patients who had been in the hospital for less than ten years and had an IQ above 80.

Adult↗

PubMed1979

Overjustification effects in token economies.

This study tested the relevance to clinical token economies of the overjustification hypothesis that tangible reward interferes with intrinsic interest in target behaviors and causes such behaviors to be less probable following a period of reinforcement than preceding such a period. The study was carried out in an ongoing token economy for chronic psychiatric patients. Alternated over an 8-week period were weeks of token and no-token reward for one of the program's target behaviors, toothbrushing. Two different amounts of token reward were employed in order to examine whether reward magnitude might influence the presence or extent of overjustification effects. Little evidence was found for the presence of overjustification effects in token economies. However, maintenance of toothbrushing was greater in no-token weeks following weeks of low amounts of token reward than in no-token weeks following weeks of higher amounts of reward. The importance of such complex functional relationships is discussed.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1988

Token economy in a hospital rehabilitation system.

A ward-based token economy programme which formed one part of a larger rehabilitative service for long-stay psychiatric patients is described. The clinical effectiveness of the programme is examined by the use of various nursing, psychological and psychiatric assessments before and after the patients' treatment on the ward, and the progress of former patients is followed-up as they move to different parts of the rehabilitation service. Significant clinical gains in patients' psychiatric symptomatology and problem behaviour on the ward are reported, although there were indications that improvement was not fully maintained as the patients moved on to other parts of the service. Comparison of the present clinical programme with the earlier research programmes on the ward indicated that the present regime was superior. The advantages and problems of token economy as a rehabilitative facility are discussed, outlining the various different roles for token economy with psychiatric rehabilitation. Finally, the future of token economy for long-stay patients is considered, questioning whether it might more appropriately be replaced by other structured ward programmes.

Adult↗

PubMed1976

Some antitherapeutic effects of the token economy: a case in point.

This paper deals with some of the complaints of patients and difficulties in treatment which arose on a psychiatric ward which was administered as a token economy. Most evaluations of token economies have been made by advocates of the technique and have selected specific behaviors as "targets" for reinforcement. I do not wish to engage in polemics regarding the relative worth of behavioral and psychodynamic theories of treatment, but this paper reflects my own misgivings about certain aspects of the token economy and is concerned more with the quality of the ward atmosphere it creates than with specific behavior changes. I will describe the difficulties encountered on a single ward because I suspect that such difficulties, while perhaps ubiquitous to psychiatric wards and mental hospitals, are amplified within the token economy to the detriment of patient care. My purposes in this paper, then, are twofold: to present and briefly analyze several recurrent problems on a token economy within a wider context of events than is typical for such discussions; and to provoke advocates of the token economy system to consider the possibility that their favorite treatment modality may actually limit the potential for therapy. In fulfilling these purposes, I shall also be making reference to some psychiatric literature, now fifteen to twenty years old, which has struggled with similar problems with partial success, and of which psychologists and younger psychiatrists are too often unaware.

Humans↗

PubMed1987

The long-term effects of a token economy on safety performance in open-pit mining.

A token economy that used trading stamps as tokens was instituted at two dangerous open-pit mines. Employees earned stamps for working without lost-time injuries, for being in work groups in which all other workers had no lost-time injuries, for not being involved in equipment-damaging accidents, for making adopted safety suggestions, and for unusual behavior which prevented an injury or accident. They lost stamp awards if they or other workers in their group were injured, caused equipment damage, or failed to report accidents or injuries. The stamps could be exchanged for a selection of thousands of items at redemption stores. Implementation of the token economy was followed by large reductions in the number of days lost from work because of injuries, the number of lost-time injuries, and the costs of accidents and injuries. The reductions in costs far exceeded the costs of operating the token economy. All improvements were maintained over several years.

Accident Prevention↗

PubMed1975

A review of token economy treatment programs for psychiatric inpatients.

The author has reviewed outcome studies of token economy programs for psychiatric inpatients. Only studies that employed some control procedures in their evaluation were included. Token economies were most effective in modifying inhospital work, personal care, and some psychotic behaviors. Studies that assessed token programs to prepare patients for community living and reduce recidivism generally affirmed the effectiveness of token procedures, but the studies were poorly designed, and they lacked systematic follow-up data. Almost all studies failed to examine possible interactions between chemotherapy and the token economies. The author suggests the need for studies using token economies with psychiatric patients other than chronic schizophrenics, who have been studied almost exclusively to date.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1979

The evolution of a token economy programme for female chronic schizophrenic patients.

Token economy programmes are becoming an increasingly familiar sight in British psychiatric hospitals, yet many remain inflexible and prone to breakdown after a period in operation. This paper describes the evolution of a token economy for female chronic schizophrenic patients, where the nursing staff with minimal 'psychological' support and in dealing with a programme free of research constraints, aimed to increase the therapeutic potential of the system. The major developments arose from the need: (i) to extinguish the emergence of undesirable behaviour; (2) to develop a more individualized approach to treating patients' problems; (3) to keep consistent adequate records; (4) to re-establish contact with the community and (5) to cater for patients' varied responses to treatment.

Aftercare↗

PubMed1976

Token economies in institutional settings. Historical, political, deprivation, ethical, and generalization issues.

The use of the token economy in institutional settings is examined in light of historical, political, deprivation, ethical, and generalization issues. The major points may be summarized as follows. a) The token economy may be viewed as a palliative measure to prevent the incredibly regressive effects of institutionalization. b) To achieve control in token programs in many "total institutions," an artificial state of deprivation must be achieved. c) Generalization of behaviors into the natural environment following the patient's stay in a token economy program should not be taken for granted. d) What the patient learns in a token economic system may not be what the token economy's program director probably intends.

Behavior Therapy↗

PubMed1991

Strategies that overcome barriers to token economies in community programs for severe mentally ill adults.

The token economy has been found to be an effective strategy for treatment of severe mentally ill inpatients. However, several barriers have prevented facile transfer of token economy strategies from inpatient settings to community programs; these barriers include outpatient access to competing reinforcers, supplemental income that help outpatients to purchase these reinforcers, weakening of the efficacy of response costs, limited hours of the day in which day treatment contingencies apply, and interference of contingency contracts by family or friends. These barriers can be obviated by avoiding response cost contingencies, providing reinforcers cheaply, and including other systems in the development and implementation of token contingencies.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1990

Motivating adolescents to reduce their fines in a token economy.

Adolescents on a 16-bed token economy ward of a state hospital were subjected to four interventions in a seven-phase experiment to reduce the number of fines they received each day. Phase I was a four-week baseline period. Phases II and III were four- and five-week periods, respectively, in which residents were awarded tickets for a weekly $10 lottery each day they were at or below a changing criterion of daily fines. In Phase IV, residents received coupons, exchangeable for money, for days with zero fines. Phase V was a return to baseline. Phase VI was a one-week period in which daily lotteries for $1 were held, with the criterion for receiving a ticket being zero fines on the previous day. Phase VII was a one-week return to baseline. No significant differences in average fines per day, number of residents meeting criteria, or mean number of zero-fine days per week were found across phases. Results are discussed in terms of amount and immediacy of reinforcement, other opportunities to gain money, possible rebelliousness of the residents against the increased aversiveness of fines, and implications for further research.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[A token economy experiment in young schizophrenic patients].

The paradigm of operant behaviour (Skinner) systematically applied to a group constitutes the theoretical basis of token-economy programs. Such a system consists in relating a certain behaviour to a consequence known to the patient. The efficiency of a token-economy has already been demonstrated for various populations: delinquants, schooolboys, chronic psychiatric patients. This pilot-study reports on our experience in applying in token-economy program in a group of young schizophrenics, most of them being hebefrenics: concepts and difficulties in realisation, hierarchical structure of the system, and results obtained.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1976

Effects of price manipulations on consumer behavior in sheltered workshop token economy.

The consumer behavior of institutionalized retarded clients in a sheltered workshop token economy were evaluated by changing prices in the workshop store. In the first experiment we found that clients displayed elasticity of demand in that raising the prices of frequently purchased goods reduced the frequency and amount spent on more expendable items. Results from the second experiment showed that this change in spending pattern was not due to the relative modal unit price of item classes. The regulation of demand for consumer goods is a potentially useful way to maintain economic balance and effectiveness of a token economy.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1977

Symptom changes in chronic schizophrenic patients on a token economy: a controlled experiment.

An 18-month controlled experiment was conducted into the effects of a token economy programme on the ward behaviour and symptoms of chronic schizophrenic patients. An experimental group received tokens dependent upon appropriate behaviour, while a matched control group on the same ward received every aspect of the ward programme similarly except that tokens were not dependent upon their behaviour. Regular assessment showed that both groups improved substantially in social withdrawal. Over twelve months of treatment the experimental group improved no more than the control group. There were no symptomatic changes. The conclusions were that token economy is a treatment affecting withdrawl and social behaviour rather than symptomatology, and that factors other than reinforcement by tokens were responsible for the main changes.

Chronic Disease↗

PubMed1979

Multiple-baseline analysis of a token economy for psychiatric inpatients.

Twelve behaviors selected for reinforcement among 16 chronic psychiatric inpatients were divided into four classes: (a) personal hygiene, (b) personal management, (c) ward work, and (d) social skills. A token economy program was introduced for each class in a sequential, cumulative, multiple-baseline format. Corrections were included for methodological deficiencies frequently enountered in past studies. Treatment variables were systematically monitored, and target behavior rates, levels of global individual functioning, general ward behavior, and off-ward behavior were assessed during baseline, implementation, and probe periods. Results indicated abrupt and substantial increases in performance of most target behaviors, significant improvements in global individual functioning (p less than .025), positive changes in general ward behavior, and increases in social interaction during off-ward activities. The findings provide strong evidence for the efficacy of a token economy and indicate that the multiple-baseline design can be a useful method for evaluating token economy programs.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed1978

Token economy, pimozide and chronic schizophrenia.

Response to a token economy was assessed in male chronic schizophrenic in-patients who were given, in a double-blind cross-over trial, pimozide (up to 20 mg daily) or chlorpromazine )up to 1,000 mg daily), each for three months. After six months there was little change in the patients' mental state, but general ward behaviour and token-rewarded "target" behaviours improved significantly. There were no statistically significant between-drug differences, but the trend was that general ward behaviour, but not token-rewarded behaviour, improved more on pimozide. The patients who showed initiative and cooperated best with staff were those whose token-rewarded behaviour was most satisfactory.

Behavior Therapy↗

PubMed1979

Internal control and success orientation in a token economy for emotionally disturbed adolescents.

Forty-one emotionally disturbed adolescents were tested at each of three token economy levels on Rotter's Internal-External Locus of Control Scale and Guevar's Success-Failure Inventory. Delay of reinforcement (immediate, daily, weekly) was the primary differentiation between levels. One-way analyses of variance indicated a change across levels in the direction of more perceived internal control of behavior (p less than .025) and a greater success orientation (p less than .005). Change scores were not correlated with length of time in the program. Results suggest that the token economy as an external source of control is not necessarily incompatible with increasing patient expectancies of present and future control of the environment.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1977

The effect of holidays on a token economy regime.

This preliminary study investigates the effect on patients' performance of a set time off, in the form of a short holiday, from a strict reinforcement (token economy) regime. Assessment was by the patients' mean token earnings before and after the holiday and their self-care and work performance throughout. The results suggest that a holiday from a token economy has beneficial effects for patients.

Behavior Therapy↗