Toilet Training Essay

Parents across the nation have struggled with the effectiveness of toilet training. Toilet training is an age old task that does not just consist of making it in time to the restroom, but a complete process of discussion, undressing, eliminating, dressing again, flushing the toilet, and washing ones hands (Brannigan, Cuskelly, and Keen, 2007). With a variety of techniques parents have created their own way of completing the process of toilet training through some form of behavior modification. Behavior modification involves the systematic application of learning principles and techniques to assess and improve individuals’ covert and overt behaviors in order to enhance their daily functioning (Martin and Pear, 2015). While parents create their

Positive reinforcement and differential reinforcement plays a tremendous role in toilet training, it is a way to show a child that when things are done correctly there are certain rewards that may be given when and only if the task is done accurately. Positive reinforcers can be classified under five somewhat overlapping headings: consumable, activity, manipulative, processionals, and social (Martin and Pear, 2015). Consumable reinforcers are that a child can eat or drink. Reinforces that involve activity include watching a favorite television show or ride a bike for a period of time. Possessional reinforcers are those that involve ones favorite item such as; wearing your favorite shirt or sitting in your favorite chair. Lastly, social reinforcers are those that are most commonly use, these reinforcers include smiles, pats on the back, and praise. When we look at differential reinforcement we tend to see reinforcers only given contingent on the rate that the task is done and if the task is done correctly. Studies show that children respond to positive reinforcement as well as differential reinforcement rather than no reinforcement at all. We will examine a variety of toilet training techniques that have become effective due to the use of positive and differential

This study focused on the complete process of toilet training while having the goal of fewer accidents, they accomplished this study by using a multi-0component training program that included: fluid loading, in which beverages were provided every thirty minutes, scheduled sits on the toilet every thirty minutes, and a differential reinforcement contingent on remaining dry (Greer, 2013). In this study the loading of beverages every thirty minutes played a tremendous part on the children’s unconditioned stimulus, which in this study is the urge to use the restroom. Naturally any human being that consumes a liquid as frequent as every thirty minutes their unconditioned response will be to eventually eliminate. Azrin and Foxx created a thirty minute interval that was designated just for the child sit on the toilet to familiarize oneself with the toilet and when one should use the toilet. This familiarization with the toilet helped with the unconditioned response, which is the child using the restroom in their pants. According to Greer early training studies were essentially management minded interventions to improve health conditions and decrease the amount of soiled laundry (Greer, 2013). The last part of Azrin and Foxx study was to administer differential reinforcers when the toilet training task was completed in the correct manner the client was offered a reward which consisted of edibles, social