ACADEMIC LEARNING
I learned that a token system is effective in promoting the participants' behaviour.
I learned that a token system is effective in promoting the participants' behaviour.
I learned that a token system is effective in promoting the participants' behaviour.
I learned that a token system is effective in promoting the participants' behaviour.
A token is an object or symbol that can be exchanged for goods or services (Hackenberg, 2009). It is easy to deliver, leading to immediate reinforcement. It was also found that tokens would only gain value when paired with other stimuli. In this case, our tokens were marbles, and we paired them with prizes to act as positive reinforcers.
For the game using tokens, ‘Tokenomy’, they had to match the scenarios on the cards to the respective (personal and social) impacts of problem gambling on the board. The impacts that we focused on were the lesser-known impacts of problem gambling.
The number of answers they matched correctly would be the number of marbles they received after. With the marbles, they would be able to exchange them for prizes. For example, 10 or more marbles would allow them to receive a water bottle.
Our goal was for at least 80% of the participants to match a minimum of 5 or more cards correctly within 1minute 45 seconds. By doing so, it would indicate a successful understanding of the personal and social impacts of problem gambling. According to our evaluation, 26 out of 30 participants managed to match at least 5 or more cards correctly, meaning that our goal was met.
This shows that the token system is effective in promoting the participants' behaviour (actively searching for the correct answer in the handout we gave them) because the tokens (marbles) act as a positive reinforcer. Hence, as a result of the token system being effective, we were successful in educating at least 80% of the participants about the lesser-known impacts of problem gambling.
Therefore, I learned that by using the behavioural principle of the token system, we were able to successfully reinforce the participants' behaviour in terms of their new knowledge about the lesser-known impacts of problem gambling. With the reinforced behaviour, they can now share information within their social circle and look out for individuals who have been affected by the impacts of problem gambling.
Hackenberg, T. D. (2009). Token reinforcement: A review and analysis. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behaviour, 91(2), 257-286. doi:10.1901/jeab.2009.91-257