Select backup reinforcers that are genuinely motivating — not what should motivate you

A token economy fails if the backup reward — what the tokens buy — does not actually motivate the person.

Why it works

Backup reinforcers (the actual items, activities, or privileges that tokens can be exchanged for) determine the value of the token. If the backup reinforcer does not motivate the individual, the tokens have no functional value and the system collapses. Azrin’s original work used individualized reinforcer assessments to identify what each person actually found motivating, rather than assuming standard reinforcers. This is the most frequently skipped step in personal reward systems.

How to do it

1. List 10–15 things you genuinely want — experiences, items, privileges — across a range of sizes and costs.
2. Assign each a rough token cost proportional to its value to you (small = 5 tokens, medium = 20, large = 100).
3. Test the system for one week: did you work toward any backup reinforcer? If not, the current menu does not motivate you and needs revision.
4. Revisit the menu monthly — reinforcer value changes and the same reward can become neutral with familiarity.

Evidence

Reinforcer assessment and individualized backup reinforcer selection are standard procedures in applied behavior analysis and clinical token economy design. (clinical)

What functions as a reinforcer is individual and context-dependent; the gap between stated preferences and actual behavioral reinforcers is often large.

Common mistake

Using abstract or deferred backup reinforcers ("savings toward a vacation") that are too psychologically distant to function as real motivators for daily behavior.