McGinnis, J. C., Friman, P. C., & Carlyon, W. D. (1999).
The effect of token rewards on "intrinsic" motivation for doing math.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis,
32, 375-379.
This study used a multielement baseline design to analyze the
effects of token rewards delivered contingent upon completion of
math problems by 2 middle-school boys. Time spent on math and
number of work pages completed increased (with high accuracy)
during reward conditions and were maintained during fading and
withdrawal. At follow-up, time spent and work pages completed
remained well above baseline for 1 boy and fell below for the
other, while accuracy remained high and ratings of liking math
were the highest possible for both boys. Overall, the results are
inconsistent with warnings about use of token rewards to motivate
children.
DESCRIPTORS: _reinforcement, motivation, token economy, mathematics