C.11 Token economies
A token economy is a system in which clients earn tokens, such as chips, stickers, check marks or points, right after defined target behaviors, and later exchange them for backup reinforcers. RBTs implement token economies by delivering tokens immediately and only as the plan specifies, running exchanges as written, carrying out response cost only when it is in the plan, and recording tokens earned and exchanged.
What the outline says
Task C.11 in content area C, Behavior Acquisition (19 of the 75 scored questions): "Implement token economies."
The parts of a token economy
Every token economy has the same core parts, all set by the supervisor:
- Target behaviors: clearly defined behaviors that earn tokens, such as "completes a worksheet" or "raises hand and waits to be called on." A vague target such as "good behavior" leads to inconsistent delivery; if a plan is unclear, ask your supervisor which behaviors earn a token.
- Tokens: objects or marks that can be delivered quickly. Tokens should be safe for the client (large picture tokens on a board for a young child who mouths small objects), durable and practical for the setting (a punch card in your pocket for a community outing).
- Backup reinforcers: the items and activities tokens are exchanged for, often chosen with the help of preference assessments.
- Exchange rules: how many tokens each backup costs and when and where exchanges happen.
Tokens are conditioned reinforcers. They have no value on their own; they gain it by being exchanged for backup reinforcers, and when they can be exchanged for a variety of backups they become generalized conditioned reinforcers (task C.2 covers how conditioned reinforcers are established). When tokens are added after a behavior and the behavior increases, that is positive reinforcement.
Delivering tokens
- Deliver the token immediately after the target behavior, with specific praise that names the behavior: "You put your shoes on, here's a token!"
- Deliver tokens only for target behaviors. Tokens given to cheer up a sad client, on request, or to stop crying weaken the contingency, and offering tokens during problem behavior can reinforce that behavior.
- Follow the delivery schedule. New systems usually give a token after every occurrence of the target behavior; later, the plan may require several responses per token. If the plan says one token after every third correct response, 14 correct responses earn 4 tokens.
- Follow any rule about which responses earn tokens, such as tokens for independent responses only. A prompted correct response then earns praise, if the plan allows, but no token.
- Keep the board visible. Empty spaces show the client how many more tokens are needed for the exchange.
- Watch for missed opportunities. In busy sessions, missed tokens mean the target behavior is reinforced less often and may weaken.
Running exchanges
Exchanges keep tokens valuable. Run them when and how the plan says, and deliver the backup reinforcer as soon as the exchange happens; adding demands after the client has handed over tokens weakens the system. If the plan lets the client choose from a menu, let the client choose. Some plans also have the client pick the backup before work starts and place its picture on the board as a reminder of what the tokens will buy.
Systems for young clients or clients new to tokens usually require only a few tokens per exchange, because a long wait for the backup can weaken the tokens. The supervisor raises requirements gradually.
Work through exchange arithmetic carefully. If 4 tokens buy 10 minutes of drawing and the client has 12 tokens, that is 3 exchanges, or 30 minutes. If a sticker costs 3 tokens and a game costs 8, a client with 14 tokens who buys the game first has 6 tokens left, enough for 2 stickers.
Backup reinforcers must be extras, never things a client has a right to, such as regular meals, rest, bathroom access or contact with family. If a client asks for a backup that is not on the menu, explain that it is not on the menu and pass the request to the supervisor.
Response cost
Some plans include response cost: removing a set number of tokens after a specific problem behavior. Because something is taken away and the behavior decreases, it is a form of negative punishment. Carry it out only if it is in the plan, exactly as written: the specified number of tokens, right after the behavior, calmly and without lecturing. Response cost can produce emotional responding, aggression or escape and avoidance, so report these reactions. If the plan has no response cost, earned tokens stay with the client and you follow the plan's procedure for the problem behavior.
With response cost, subtract before dividing. A client who earns 22 tokens and loses 4 has 18; at 5 tokens per break, that buys 3 breaks with 3 tokens left over.
Variations and connections
Token economies are used in homes, clinics, classrooms, vocational settings and residential programs. A level system is a type of token economy in which clients move up to levels with more privileges as they meet criteria. In a classroom, a group may earn tokens together, such as marbles in a jar when the whole class follows a rule (an interdependent group contingency). Tokens are also often combined with differential reinforcement, such as a token for each interval with no hitting (DRO).
Record tokens earned and exchanged as the plan directs so your supervisor can see how the system is working and decide on changes, such as thinning the schedule or fading toward natural reinforcers.
Examples and non-examples
| Example | Non-example |
|---|---|
| Right after a teen finishes a chore, the RBT marks a point and says, "Dishes done, that's a point!" | The RBT gives all of the day's points at the end of the session for 'being good overall.' |
| The plan has response cost of one token for hitting; after one hit, the RBT calmly removes one token. | The plan has no response cost, but the RBT removes all of the client's tokens after a thrown pencil. |
| The client hands over 10 tokens for 10 minutes of tablet time and gets the tablet right away. | The RBT takes the tokens and then asks for three more tasks before handing over the tablet. |
Common mistakes
- Giving tokens noncontingently, on demand or to stop problem behavior. Tokens should follow only the target behaviors in the plan.
- Delaying token delivery or exchanges. Immediacy keeps the link between behavior, token and backup clear.
- Using response cost, threats to remove tokens, or extra token removal that the plan does not include.
- Changing exchange rates, adding backup items or picking the backup for the client when the plan gives the client a choice.
- Using basic needs or rights as backup reinforcers. Backups must be extras.
How it's tested
Expect scenarios about correct token delivery, what to do when a client demands tokens or acts out, how to carry out response cost, and simple calculations with exchange rates, ratio schedules or response cost. You may also be asked to name the procedure (token economy, response cost, level system, DRO with tokens). The best answer delivers tokens immediately and contingently, follows the plan's exchange and response-cost rules exactly, and passes suggested changes to the supervisor.
Practice questions for task C.11
10 of our 34 questions on this task. The rest are in the Behavior Acquisition practice sets and the mock exams.
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Question 1Which set lists the core parts of a token economy?
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D: Target behaviors, tokens, and backup reinforcers with exchange rules. A token economy needs clearly defined behaviors that earn tokens, the tokens themselves, and a menu of backup reinforcers with rules for when and how tokens are exchanged.
- A: Baseline, intervention and reversal phases describe a research design, not a token economy.
- B: A task analysis, prompt hierarchy and mastery criterion are parts of chaining and prompting programs.
- C: A time-out area and timer belong to a time-out procedure, not to a token economy.
Task C.11 · 40-hour curriculum section E
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Question 2Which token delivery best follows standard practice?
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C: Giving a token right after the behavior and naming the behavior. Tokens work best when delivered immediately after the target behavior, together with specific praise that names the behavior. This makes the contingency clear and pairs praise with the token.
- A: Giving tokens only at the end of the session delays reinforcement and does not link tokens to specific behaviors.
- B: Giving tokens on request reinforces asking for tokens rather than the target behavior.
- D: Tokens given on a time schedule regardless of behavior are not contingent on the target behavior.
Task C.11 · 40-hour curriculum section E
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Question 3A client seems sad, so an RBT gives them two tokens "to cheer them up," even though they have not performed any target behavior. Why is this a problem?
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D: Tokens given without the target behavior weaken the contingency. A token economy works because tokens follow specific target behaviors. Giving tokens for nothing weakens that relationship, and it may also reinforce whatever the client was doing at the time.
- A: A client's mood does not decide whether tokens are given; the target behavior does.
- B: Tokens are conditioned reinforcers whether or not they are given contingently.
- C: Response cost removes tokens; giving tokens is not response cost.
Task C.11 · 40-hour curriculum section E
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Question 4The plan says a token is earned for each completed worksheet. A client finishes half a worksheet and demands a token. What should the RBT do?
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D: Restate what earns a token and give it when the sheet is done. Tokens follow the target behavior as defined in the plan. Restating the rule and delivering the token as soon as the worksheet is done keeps the contingency clear.
- A: Giving the token after a demand reinforces demanding and breaks the plan's contingency.
- B: Partial tokens are not part of the plan and change the earning rule.
- C: Removing tokens is response cost, which can only be used if the plan includes it.
Task C.11 · 40-hour curriculum section E
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Question 5A client's plan includes response cost of one token for each instance of hitting. The client hits once. How should the RBT carry this out?
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C: Calmly remove one token right away, without lecturing. Response cost should be carried out exactly as written: the specified amount, right after the behavior, in a calm and neutral way. Extra talk or attention can itself reinforce problem behavior.
- A: Removing more tokens than the plan specifies changes the procedure and may increase emotional responding.
- B: A long delay weakens the link between the behavior and the consequence.
- D: Repeated warnings are not part of the plan and change the procedure.
Task C.11 · 40-hour curriculum section E
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Question 6A client earns 1 token for each completed worksheet. The exchange rate is 4 tokens for 10 minutes of drawing. The client completes 12 worksheets and exchanges all of the tokens for drawing time. How many minutes of drawing does the client earn?
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B: 30 minutes. 12 worksheets earn 12 tokens. 12 tokens divided by 4 tokens per exchange gives 3 exchanges, and 3 x 10 minutes = 30 minutes.
- A: 12 is the number of tokens earned, not the minutes of drawing.
- C: 40 minutes would require 16 tokens.
- D: 48 minutes is 12 x 4, which multiplies tokens by the exchange rate instead of dividing.
Task C.11 · 40-hour curriculum section E
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Question 7A client earns 1 token for each correct answer. The plan includes response cost of 1 token for each instance of throwing. In one session the client gives 22 correct answers and throws 4 times. Each break costs 5 tokens. How many breaks can the client buy?
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B: 3 breaks. Tokens kept = 22 earned - 4 removed = 18. 18 / 5 = 3 breaks, with 3 tokens left over.
- A: 2 breaks would cost only 10 tokens, and the client has 18.
- C: 4 breaks would need 20 tokens; this answer ignores the 4 tokens removed.
- D: 5 breaks would need 25 tokens; this answer adds the removed tokens instead of subtracting them.
Task C.11 · 40-hour curriculum section E
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Question 8The plan says the client earns a token after every third correct response. By the end of a work period the client has 14 correct responses. How many tokens has the client earned?
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B: 4 tokens. Tokens come after responses 3, 6, 9 and 12, which is 4 tokens. Responses 13 and 14 count toward the next token but have not yet earned one.
- A: 3 tokens would cover only 9 correct responses.
- C: 5 tokens would require 15 correct responses.
- D: 14 tokens would mean a token for every correct response, but the plan uses every third response.
Task C.11 · 40-hour curriculum section E
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Question 9In a residential program, clients move up to higher levels with more privileges and independence as they meet set behavior criteria, and may move down if they do not. What is this arrangement called?
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D: A level system. A level system is a type of token economy in which clients move through levels based on meeting performance criteria, with each higher level giving access to more privileges.
- A: A group contingency makes reinforcement depend on the behavior of a group, not on individual levels.
- B: A behavior chain is a sequence of linked responses, not a system of privilege levels.
- C: A DRO schedule reinforces the absence of a behavior during an interval.
Task C.11 · 40-hour curriculum section E
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Question 10In a classroom, a marble is added to a jar each time the whole class follows the transition rule. When the jar is full, the whole class earns a party. What kind of contingency is this?
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C: An interdependent group contingency. In an interdependent group contingency, everyone receives the reinforcer based on the performance of the group as a whole. Here the class earns marbles, and the party, only when the group meets the rule.
- A: In an independent group contingency, each student earns reinforcement based on their own behavior.
- B: In a dependent group contingency, the group's reinforcement depends on the behavior of one student or a small subgroup.
- D: Response cost removes reinforcers; here marbles are added.
Task C.11 · 40-hour curriculum section E
Answer every question to see your score.
Key terms
| Token economy | A reinforcement system in which a learner earns tokens for target behaviors and later exchanges them for backup reinforcers. |
|---|---|
| Backup reinforcer | The item, activity or privilege a learner receives in exchange for tokens, which gives the tokens their reinforcing value. |
| Response cost | A negative punishment procedure in which a specific amount of a reinforcer, such as tokens or points, is removed contingent on a behavior, reducing that behavior. |
| Generalized conditioned reinforcer | A conditioned reinforcer that has been paired with many different reinforcers, such as money, tokens, or attention, so its value does not depend on any single motivating operation. |
| Conditioned reinforcer | A stimulus that was once neutral and became reinforcing because it was paired with unconditioned reinforcers or other established reinforcers; also called a secondary or learned reinforcer. |
| Negative punishment | Removing a stimulus, usually a reinforcer, immediately after a behavior, with the result that the behavior occurs less often in the future. |
| Positive reinforcement | Positive reinforcement occurs when a stimulus is added or presented right after a behavior and, as a result, that behavior becomes more likely in the future. |
| Immediacy | Delivering a reinforcer right after the target behavior; the shorter the delay between a response and its consequence, the more effective reinforcement usually is. |
| Contingency | A dependent relation between a behavior and a consequence: the consequence is delivered only if the behavior occurs (if this behavior, then this consequence). |
| Differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) | Delivering a reinforcer when the problem behavior has not occurred during a set interval, or at a set moment, so reinforcement depends on the behavior's absence. |
| Procedural fidelity | Procedural fidelity is the degree to which an intervention is carried out exactly as written in the plan; it is also called treatment integrity or procedural integrity. |
| Fixed ratio | A fixed ratio (FR) schedule delivers reinforcement after a set number of responses, such as after every 5th response on an FR 5 schedule. |
| Motivating operation | An environmental variable that temporarily changes how reinforcing a stimulus is and changes how often behavior that has produced that stimulus occurs. |
| Operational definition | An operational definition describes a target behavior in observable, measurable terms so that different observers can agree on when it does and does not occur. |
| Client dignity | Treating each client as a person of worth, with respect for their privacy, preferences, choices and age, in all interactions and procedures. |
| Punishment side effects | Unwanted effects that can accompany punishment, including emotional and aggressive reactions, escape and avoidance, behavioral contrast, imitation of punishment, and overuse by the person delivering it. |
| Emotional responding | Emotional behavior such as crying, yelling, aggression or agitation that can occur as a secondary effect of extinction or punishment. |
| Differential reinforcement | Reinforcing one behavior or response class while withholding reinforcement for others, usually problem behavior, so the reinforced behavior increases and the others decrease. |
| Continuous reinforcement | Continuous reinforcement (CRF) is a schedule in which every occurrence of the target behavior is reinforced. |