The effects of using perseverative interests or obsessions on token economies for individuals with autism spectrum disorder

A single-subject, alternating treatments design with initial baseline testing was used to analyze the effectiveness of perseverative interests or obsessions as tokens within a token economy to change behavior. The literature examined in this paper presents several examples of how token economies are used to effect behavior change. Two research questions were addressed in this study; 1) What is the effect of incorporating perseverative interests or obsessions into a token economy designed to decrease problem behaviors? 2) What are the effects over time of incorporating perseverative interests or obsessions into a token economy compared to a traditional token (i.e., a token economy not aligned to a student’s obsessions) economy for individuals with autism? The results from this study were inconclusive, as implementation of the intervention phase was not completed. The researcher reported data from baseline and training measures that showed a decrease in problem behavior and slight increase in target behavior when a traditional token economy was implemented. The data does not support any prediction for the implementation of the alternating treatments of a traditional token economy versus a token economy that utilizes a perseverative interest or obsession