Toilet Training in Less than a Day
Review of Manual for One-Day Potty Training by Nathan Azrin
May 13, 2009
Psychologists Nathan Azrin and Richard Foxx developed a revolutionary potty training method in 1974 that claims to train children in an average of four hours. After training, children can be expected to use the bathroom all by themselves without reminder or assistance.
Development of the Azrin-Foxx Approach
The Azrin-Foxx method was first conceived while studying the learning patterns of severely mentally handicapped adults and developing intensive training programs to elevate their levels of functioning. Though some changes were made to adapt the training program to children, the basic elements of imitation, positive reinforcement, repetition, and consistent follow-up remain the same.
Assessing Potty Training Readiness
According to a formal study, children of both genders above 20 months old are usually trained successfully in an average of 4 hours. Toilet Training in Less than a Day provides three simple readiness tests for bladder control, physical coordination, and instructional readiness to help parents determine whether the method will work for their child.
Preparing to Potty Train
In the Azrin-Foxx method, potty training is not a gradual process that takes place over several months. It requires a solid block of time dedicated to "potty boot camp," where children undergo intensive training.
On the day of training, parents will need:
- a variety of the child's favorite drinks, snacks, and treats
- a potty chair with an easily removable bowl
- a doll that wets on demand
- several pairs of loose fitting underwear
If there are other siblings in the household, the trainer should arrange for a relative or friend to watch them during training. The method suggests using the kitchen, rather than the bathroom, for training.
Step 1: Teaching a Doll to Use the Potty
People always learn a skill best when they teach it to others, and children are no exception. The first step in training is to assist a doll that wets in pulling down its pants, watching it "pee" in the potty, and giving it ample praise. The child then "helps" the doll carry the bowl to the toilet, empty it, flush, and replace the bowl in the potty. The child "trains" the doll until he or she has vicariously learned how to use the potty.
Step 2: Correcting the Doll when It Wets Its Pants
The next thing the child needs to know is what happens when there is an accident. The doll "wets" its pants, and the child is instructed to help it "practice." Practice involves running to the potty from the site of the accident ten times. The child vicariously learns what will happen to him or her in case of an accident.
Step 3: Dry Pants Inspections
Regularly checking the child's pants for dryness and praising him or her with a drink or snack creates the motivation to stay dry. Toilet Training in Less Than a Day gives detailed schedules of when to perform dry pants checks throughout the course of training.
Step 4: Encouraging the Child to Use the Potty
Beginning just prior to training, the child should be encouraged to have a lot of tasty drinks. These should continue to be offered all throughout training. This will create lots of opportunities for the child to (hopefully) successfully use the potty. The drinks, along with salty snacks, can serve as positive reinforcement.
Step 5: Positive Reinforcement
Positive reinforcement is very important in the early stages of training. Every step of the toileting process should be praised, both verbally and by giving treats. Toilet Training in Less than a Day gives concrete advice on how to gradually "phase out" the praise so that children don't become addicted to it, or worse, refuse to use the potty without a reward. The book also lists several different techniques for praising the child during training.
What to Do after Potty Training
After the intensive period of "potty boot camp" is over, the child will still be practicing his or her newly-acquired skills. There will be some accidents (Toilet Training in Less than a Day instructs parents on how to handle them), but the child should be able to carry out the toileting process all by himself on most occasions. Dry pants inspections should continue for several days after training has been completed.
Review of Toilet Training in Less Than a Day
Toilet Training in Less than a Day provides detailed to-the-minute schedules of what to do during training and aims to teach children to use the potty completely independently in a single day. The Azrin-Foxx method works because children are motivated by pride in their newfound independence, not by parental praise or hopes of a reward.
The only real shortcoming to the book is that it assumes that nighttime training and bowel movement training will naturally follow daytime training, and does not address problems that some children may have in those areas.
Readers might also enjoy "Does One-Day Potty Training Really Work?"
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