Promoting law enforcement for child protection: a community analysis.

Police in a Colorado town rarely wrote tickets for child-safety-seat violations. The researchers paired a short training with a coupon. The coupon waived a $50 fine if the parent bought a seat and got training.

They counted monthly tickets before, during, and after the program. They also watched a nearby town that did nothing.

Tickets jumped from almost zero to more than 50 a month while the coupon was active. When the program stopped, tickets dropped back. The comparison town stayed flat the whole time.

Bringing the coupon back again raised tickets once more, showing the coupon alone drove the change.

Davison et al. (1984) saw the same quick up-and-down with a small co-pay discount for medical follow-ups. Both studies used an ABAB design and a modest financial twist to boost safety behavior.

Cordova et al. (1993) tried mailed coupons and parking passes to get families to pediatric visits. The coupons raised cancellations, not attendance. The difference is timing: COPP removed an aversive fine right away, while the clinic deal arrived too late to matter.

Handleman et al. (1980) tested water-use fines in California. Fines barely worked there, but COPP’s coupon worked here. The key is the switch from pure punishment to penalty-plus-reward.

If you want officers, teachers, or parents to follow a safety rule, add a small, immediate reward that cancels the penalty. A $50 coupon tripled officer behavior in one month. Try the same logic in your clinic: waive a late fee if a family shows proof of completed training, or give staff a gift card for each safety checklist they finish. Pair the waiver with a quick training so the behavior sticks.