Shaping bladder and bowel continence in developmentally retarded preschool children

A program to improve bladder and bowel continence was evaluated in a preschool with four developmentally retarded children. During baseline, the children were taken to the toilet on a regular schedule, once an hour. The training program increased this frequency to once every 15 minutes for the 1st week, every 30 minutes the 2nd week, every hour the 3rd week, and every 2 hours in the 4th week. Using the toilet appropriately was reinforced with social praise and liquids. Accidents resulted in a brief verbal reprimand and simple correction (i.e., going to the bathroom, changing clothes, and sitting on the toilet). All four children showed improvement in their bladder and bowel continence. Results of the program are discussed in terms of improved efficiency of toilet training programs and their use with developmentally retarded preschool children.