The Good Behavior Game: A brief review

Joslyn et al. (2019) wrote a short story-style review of the Good Behavior Game. They rounded up every new twist on the classic team-based token system.

The paper does not give fresh data. It maps where GBG has gone lately and where it could go next.

The authors show GBG is no longer just for elementary kids. Recent work has tested it with preschoolers, high-schoolers, and students with fetal alcohol syndrome.

Teachers are also pairing the game with tools like Clear Box phone storage to tackle modern problems such as device use.

Wiskow et al. (2018) extend the map: they used GBG in a preschool reading circle and quickly leveled the disruptive behavior of a 4-year-old with FAS to that of peers.

Marini et al. (2014) push the age ceiling. Their ABAB study shows GBG still works in ninth-grade special-ed algebra, cutting class-wide off-task behavior.

Smit et al. (2019) add a tech angle. They found that tacking GBG onto a Clear Box system beats the box alone for curbing phone use and lifting engagement in urban high-school classes.

If you run classroom groups, you now have proof that GBG travels. You can keep the core rules—teams, points, brief time frame—and simply swap the reward or the problem behavior. Try it during your next transition period: set a two-minute timer, award points for voices off and materials ready, and let the winning team pick the next brain break video.