Summary: A token economy is a reinforcement system where the learner earns tokens for target behavior and exchanges them for something they actually want. This page covers what tokens are and why they work, the role of backup reinforcers, when tokens get delivered and when they get exchanged, how exchange schedules are thinned, what to do when the system stops working, and where response cost sits relative to your scope as an RBT.
Token economies turn up everywhere in ABA, and in ordinary life too. Money is one. Frequent flyer miles are one. The sticker chart on a fridge is one. They are popular because they solve a real problem: you cannot hand a learner ten minutes of iPad time after every single correct response without the session becoming nothing but breaks.
To follow this page you need conditioned reinforcement from the reinforcement guide, because that is exactly what a token is.
What a token actually is
Tokens are conditioned reinforcers that can be exchanged for something else.
A token has no value of its own. A plastic chip, a star sticker, a check mark on a laminated card, a marble in a jar. None of these matter to a learner until they reliably buy something that does. The token acquires its value entirely through its association with the backup reinforcers it can be traded for.
That's the free preview of Token Economies. The complete guide, plus all 851 practice questions and 3 full exams, is in the study pack and the book.