In token economies, shaping is...

In token economies, shaping is...

• A. Punishing Each Incorrect Response
• B. Providing Tokens Only After a Major Achievement
• C. Reinforcing Successive Approximations Toward the Target Behavior
• D. Ignoring the Behavior Until It Stops

Answer: (C)

Shaping is a gradual process of reinforcing closer and closer steps toward a desired behavior. In a token economy, you reward small, incremental progress with tokens, and those tokens can eventually be exchanged for backup reinforcers. This approach builds the full target behavior piece by piece, rather than waiting for an all-or-nothing display. Punishing incorrect responses describes punishment, not shaping. Providing tokens only after a major achievement skips the incremental progress that shaping relies on. Ignoring the behavior until it stops resembles extinction, not shaping.

Shaping is a gradual process of reinforcing closer and closer steps toward a desired behavior. In a token economy, you reward small, incremental progress with tokens, and those tokens can eventually be exchanged for backup reinforcers. This approach builds the full target behavior piece by piece, rather than waiting for an all-or-nothing display.

Punishing incorrect responses describes punishment, not shaping. Providing tokens only after a major achievement skips the incremental progress that shaping relies on. Ignoring the behavior until it stops resembles extinction, not shaping.