Johnna Stevens PSY 1400

PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT INTERVENTION

I was recently given the assistant manager position at a store in the

mall called Francesca’s Collections.

With this new position came new responsibilities.

A tiny… yet important responsibility is email collection.

BACKGROUND

Store Goal: 200 per monthWhat were we getting?

NOT ENOUGH!!

CRISIS

January February52

54

56

58

60

55

60

Baseline Email Collection

Month

# o

f em

ail

s

Break the goal down to 50 emails a week… that equals 200 emails a month (assuming there is 4 weeks in a month)

TARGET BEHAVIOR: Each six team members now needs to collect 8-9 emails a week.

EASY!!

We now have a more realistic and easier goal by breaking it down.

WHAT WAS I GOING TO DO?

No reinforcer…

There also might have been a bit of punishment having to ask for emails.

 

BUT WHY WERE WE NOT COLLECTING 200 EMAILS PER MONTH??

Before:No aversively impatient

customer

Behavior:Asks for email

After:Aversively impatient

customer

Effective Reinforcer: Present the staff with a PRIZE at the end of each week,

contingent on collecting at least 8-9 emails that week

State the Rule: “To receive this prize, you must collect at least 8-9 emails by the end of each week. At the end of the week the opportunity to receive the prize will no

longer by available to anyone who did not reach their email goal “

PLANNING THE INTERVENTION

Problem! The reinforcer is too delayed…

What is going to maintain this behavior??

Break it down with the Three-Contingency Model of Performance Management.

DETERMINING THE CONTINGENCIES

Ineffective Natural Contingency

The success of collecting 8-9 emails per week was too small, though cumulative. This was not going to maintain the behavior

Effective, Indirect-Acting Performance Management ContingencyDeadline: By end of week

The outcome of this contingency is too delayed, an analog, therefore ineffective

Effective Inferred Direct Acting Contingency

The fear of losing the opportunity to receive the prize controlled behavior directly. This is what was maintaining behavior.

Before:Staff will lose

opportunity to win prize at end of week

Behavior:Collects 8-9 emails

per week

After:Staff will not lose

opportunity to win prize at end of week

Before:Fear of loss of

opportunity to win prize by end of week

Behavior:Collects 8-9 emails

per week

After:NO Fear of loss of

opportunity to win prize by end of week

Before:Given level of email collection success

Behavior:Collects 8-9 emails

per week

After:Slightly greater level

of success

STARTING THE INTERVENTION

Started beginning of March

Handed out a typed out performance contract of the stipulations of the

intervention and rules

Obtained verbal confirmation and also had them sign their contracts: proof they

understood the intervention

This is a chart I have posted in my back room to show our progress

This is how we kept track of the emails we collected. I printed one of these out each week.

By the end of week 4 in March we had cumulatively over the 4 weeks doubled our goal with 430 emails total!

RESULTS

January Febuary March0

100

200

300

400

500

55 60

430

Email Collection

Series1

Month

num

ber

of

em

ail

s

Extremely HAPPY with my results. I plan on using this intervention for 1

more month. I want to change to reinforcer so the

current one doesn’t lose value, and so I don’t burn a hole in my pocket

I hope to also use what I have learned in this class and apply it to life & work

problems.

WHAT WAS THE REINFORCER???