# How to use a reward chart that works, without turning it into bribery

Canonical: https://romeoapps.app/en/bravi/how-to-use-a-reward-chart/
Author: Roméo Gambino · Published: 2026-09-23 · Updated: 2026-09-23 · App: Bravi (https://romeoapps.app/en/bravi/)

Reward charts, sticker charts and token boards: what research on rewards and praise shows, how to choose targets and rewards, and how to phase a chart out.

## What a reward chart is for

A reward chart, sticker chart or token board rests on a simple idea: a child earns a mark each time they do a specific thing, and a number of marks can be exchanged for something they want. It makes progress visible and makes sure effort gets noticed on days when it would otherwise go unmentioned. It is not a way to make a child obey on the spot. Use it for things your child can already do but does not yet do reliably, like getting dressed on time or putting shoes away.


## Where the idea comes from

Token systems have a long history in applied behaviour analysis. In a 1982 review, Alan Kazdin described how the token economy had spread widely across populations and behaviours, in treatment, rehabilitation, educational and community settings. He also revisited the practical obstacles identified a decade earlier, among them making the programme effective, overcoming resistance, and making the gains last and carry over once the programme ends. Parents with a sticker chart on the fridge meet the same problems on a small scale.


## The fair worry about bribery

The main criticism of rewards is that they can reduce a child’s own interest in an activity. In a classic 1973 field experiment, Lepper, Greene and Nisbett worked with children who already showed interest in an activity. Some agreed to do it in order to obtain an award; others received the same award by surprise, or none. Afterwards, the children who had expected the award showed less spontaneous interest in the activity than the other two groups. A 1999 meta-analysis of 128 studies by Deci, Koestner and Ryan found that expected and tangible rewards undermined free-choice intrinsic motivation, and that tangible rewards tended to be more detrimental for children than for college students.


## What that means in practice

The lesson is not that rewards are always harmful, but where not to use them. Keep a chart away from activities your child already loves, such as drawing, reading for pleasure or building, because the classic experiment measured exactly that: a loss of interest in an activity children already enjoyed. Use it for routine tasks that nobody does for fun, and plan from the start to phase it out. The same meta-analysis found that positive feedback increased both free-choice behaviour and self-reported interest, which is one more reason to pair each star with a few words of genuine praise.


## Choose one or two targets, stated positively

A chart with eight goals is hard to follow for everyone. Start with one or two behaviours, described as what you want to see rather than what you want to stop: “Shoes on by the door” instead of “No dawdling”. The target should be observable, so nobody argues about whether it happened, and achievable on most days, so the chart records successes rather than a list of failures.


## Make earning immediate and visible

For a young child, the link between the behaviour and the star should be obvious: the star arrives right after the step, not at the end of the day from memory. A sticker placed by the child, a star that lights up, a token dropped in a jar: the physical act helps connect the two. Older children can cope with more delay and may prefer to keep track of points themselves.


## Pick small rewards, often not things

Rewards do not need to cost money. Many of the most motivating are time and choices: one more story, fifteen minutes of play with a parent, choosing dinner or the music in the car, a bike ride together. Small rewards can be earned often, which keeps the chart alive, whereas one big prize at the end of the month is too far away for a young child to work towards. Agree on the menu in advance and let your child help choose it.


## Avoid taking stars away as punishment

A star that has been earned stays earned. Removing stars for unrelated misbehaviour turns a record of effort into a threat and teaches a child that the chart is a trap. If something else needs a consequence, deal with it separately. The chart should remain the place where good moments are counted.


## Praise the effort, not the child’s talent

What you say when you hand over a star matters. In experiments by Mueller and Dweck, fifth graders praised for their intelligence cared more about performance goals than about learning and, after a failure, persisted less, enjoyed the task less and performed worse than children praised for their effort. In a study at home, Gunderson and colleagues found that parents’ praise of effort when children were 14 to 38 months old predicted, at 7 to 8 years, the belief that ability can grow. “You kept going even though it was hard” teaches something that “You’re so clever” does not.


## Be consistent, especially at the start

A chart that is used on Monday and forgotten by Thursday teaches that stars are random. Give the star every time the target is met, at least in the first weeks, and keep the exchange rules the same. Kazdin’s review names maintaining the integrity of the programme, in other words running it as designed, among the major issues for token systems. At home, that simply means doing what you said you would do.


## Plan the exit from day one

A reward chart aims to make a behaviour habitual, then to disappear. Once a target has been met reliably for a while, take it off the chart and replace it with a new one, or gradually ask for more steps per star. Keep the praise when the stars stop. Kazdin identified long-term maintenance, gains that last after the programme ends, as one of the main challenges for token systems, which is why the exit deserves a plan rather than a sudden stop.


## Siblings: one system, separate charts

With several children, give each one their own chart and targets suited to their age, so that each child is compared with their own progress rather than with a brother or sister. A shared family reward, such as a film night unlocked when everyone’s stars add up, is one way to encourage cooperation. Keep the rules the same for everyone even when the targets differ.


## When a chart is not enough

A reward chart is an everyday parenting tool. If difficult behaviour is frequent, intense or getting worse, or if you are worried about attention, anxiety or development, talk to your child’s doctor. For preschool children aged 4 and 5 who have been diagnosed with ADHD, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends evidence-based parent training in behaviour management as the first line of treatment. That is a programme with trained professionals, not something a chart replaces.


## Where Bravi fits

Bravi builds this system into a child’s daily routine on iPhone and iPad. Each finished step lights one to three stars, as you choose, in a star jar. Your child asks for a reward in the rewards shop, and only you can approve it, behind the parent gate. You set each reward’s cost, pick from ideas such as one more story, fifteen minutes of play with a grown-up or choosing dinner, or create your own. A sticker marks each completed routine, and the weekly view shows stars and streaks. If you prefer paper, Bravi also prints a 10-star or 20-star chart, and this site offers free printable star charts.


## Questions

### Is a reward chart bribery?

A bribe is offered in the moment to stop a behaviour; a reward chart is agreed in advance and records effort over time. The research caution is real, though: expected, tangible rewards can reduce interest in activities a child already enjoys, so keep charts for routine tasks.

### What age is a reward chart for?

There is no fixed age, but the format should change. Young children need the star right after the behaviour, in a form they can see; older children can manage points, longer delays and a say in the rules.

### How long should we use a reward chart?

Until the behaviour has become a habit. Then take it off the chart, keep praising it, and replace it with a new target or stop. Plan the exit from the start so the chart does not end abruptly.

### What are good rewards that are not toys or sweets?

Time and choices: one more story, play time with a parent, choosing dinner or the weekend activity, a bike ride together, picking the music in the car. They cost little and can be earned often.

## Further reading

- Lepper, Greene & Nisbett (1973), Undermining children’s intrinsic interest with extrinsic reward: A test of the “overjustification” hypothesis, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology — https://doi.org/10.1037/h0035519
- Deci, Koestner & Ryan (1999), A meta-analytic review of experiments examining the effects of extrinsic rewards on intrinsic motivation, Psychological Bulletin — https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.125.6.627
- Kazdin (1982), The token economy: A decade later, Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis — https://doi.org/10.1901/jaba.1982.15-431
- Mueller & Dweck (1998), Praise for intelligence can undermine children’s motivation and performance, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology — https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.75.1.33
- Gunderson, Gripshover, Romero, Dweck, Goldin-Meadow & Levine (2013), Parent praise to 1- to 3-year-olds predicts children’s motivational frameworks 5 years later, Child Development — https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12064
- Wolraich et al. (2019), Clinical practice guideline for the diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in children and adolescents, Pediatrics — https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2019-2528