The Effect of Token Reinforcement on Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activity Exhibited by Young Children

We used a multiple-baseline across participants and combined reversal and multielement design to assess the effects of contingent-token-reinforcement, compared to noncontingent-token-reinforcement, on moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) exhibited by four preschool-aged children. Three children engaged in higher levels of MVPA when tokens were delivered contingent on MVPA compared to baseline (no token) and noncontingent-token conditions. Although MVPA was differentiated across contingent-token sessions and corresponding baseline (no token) control probes for three of the four participants, some variability was apparent. The present study demonstrated that the delivery of tokens contingent on MVPA can increase and maintain MVPA exhibited by preschool-aged children, resulting in more MVPA than in baseline conditions and conditions in which tokens are awarded without respect to MVPA