PSYB45H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 5: Token Economy, Smoking Cessation, Reinforcement
Document Summary
Unconditioned reinforcers: things that are reinforcing without prior learning or conditioning: e. g. , food when hungry, water when thirsty. Conditioned reinforcers: things that become reinforcing due to certain learning experiences, being paired with other reinforcers: e. g. , favourite activities, tv shows, praise. Backup reinforcers: a stimulus that is deliberately associated with other stimuli in order to cause them to become conditioned reinforcers: a backup reinforcer can be unconditioned reinforcer (e. g. , food) or a conditioned reinforcer (e. g. , a favourite toy). Tokens: conditioned reinforcers that can be accumulated and exchanged for backup reinforcers: e. g. , used in psychiatric settings to reward desirable behaviours. A behaviour modification program in which individuals can earn tokens for specific behaviours and can cash in their tokens for backup reinforcers is called a token economy or a token system. Useful for immediate reinforcement, and to help bridge the gap or delay between behaviour and more powerful reinforcers.
