Effectiveness of a rapid toilet training workshop for parents of children with developmental disabilities

• Main Author: Rinald, Katherine
• Language: English
• Published: University of British Columbia 2011
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/38188

Individuals with developmental disabilities often experience challenges in learning toileting skills, which highlights a need for effective toilet training strategies that can be readily disseminated to caregivers. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of parent attendance at a rapid toilet training-derived workshop on the toileting behaviours of their children with developmental disabilities. In the workshop, 6 parents were provided with instruction related to teaching urinary continence, which included increased fluid intake, positive reinforcement for correct toileting, scheduled toilet sittings, scheduled chair sittings to teach initiation, redirection for accidents, maintenance and generalization . Following the workshop, parents implemented the toilet training procedure they had learned at home with their children for approximately 5 days with telephone support from a researcher. A multiple baseline design was used to examine the effectiveness of the workshop. Results suggest that the toilet-training workshop resulted in increases in positive toileting behaviours in five of the six children. The results are discussed in relation to previous and future research and implications for practice.