Even though the two articles cover different topics and study populations, they address the issue of a token economy. Token economy could be understood as a form of behavior modification, which uses tokens to increase the desirable behavior in a given population, conversely reducing the undesirable behavior. The two sources use some form of token to reinforce the desired behavior. For instance, Charlop-Christy and Haymes (1998) use objects of obsession to act as reinforces for increasing the task performance of the study population, in this case, children with autism. Filcheck and McNeil (2004) do not propose a particular token for increasing the desirable behavior in the students, but they emphasize on the need for teachers to employ suitable interventions that follow the concept of token economies to reduce behavioral issues among preschool children.
In addition to using tokens to promote desirable behavior, the authors confirm that the token system might be time consuming (Filcheck & McNeil, 2004). For the autistic children, it might be difficult to find an object of obsession, particularly because the needs of the children are different. On the other hand, based on an increased prevalence of behavioral issues among preschool children, including the idea that there are several children in a single classroom, preschool teachers might find it difficult to identify a particular token that can improve the desirable behavior of all the children in the classroom. The two articles also emphasize on the need to embrace the token economy as one way of achieving desirable behavior in children with autism and preschool children with behavioral problems. However, the authors emphasize on the need for more research to be conducted, primarily to address some of the developmental, philosophical sensitivity, as well as the practicality of token economy. Through the empirical data, it would be possible to determine the most appropriate way to implement this type of system.
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References
Charlop-Christy, M. H., & Haymes, L. K. (1998). Using objects of obsession as token reinforcers for children with autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders , 28 (3), 189-198.
Filcheck, H. A., & McNeil, C. B. (2004). The use of token economies in preschool classrooms: Practical and philosophical concerns. Journal of Early and Intensive Behavior Intervention , 1 (1), 94-104.
