Disturbing Duggar Family Discipline Resurfaces as Joseph and Kendra Face Child Endangerment Charges for Allegedly Having Locks on Kids’ Bedroom Doors

Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar have repeatedly come under fire for their parenting decisions over the years, from rigid rules on male authority, fashion, and dating to their handling of eldest son Josh's shocking disclosure that he'd inappropriately touched several of his sisters as a teenager.

Now, Michelle's candid confessions about using a controversial method known as "blanket training" to teach her babies obedience and self-discipline have resurfaced.

In her 2008 book, The Duggars: 20 and Counting! Raising One of America’s Largest Families, Michelle, 59, detailed her experiences with using the technique when her children were babies.

"I would focus on blanket training, calling out ‘Okay, boys! It’s blanket time! Oh, isn’t this fun? Come pick a toy so we can have blanket time,'" she wrote. "Some days we might practice blanket time three or four times; other days we only got it in once. But gradually, it became a common practice. The boys learned to spread out their own blankets, then they eagerly chose a special toy to play with."

"We’re gonna practice. Obey mama. Sit really still and look at me with big ol’ smiles," she said. "I wanna see that smile now. No wiggles, be still."

However, if they tried to leave the blanket, stand up, or move too much, she swiftly "corrected them."

Michelle did not clarify what type of correction she used herself. However, the bizarre style of training originated from Michael and Debi Pearl's 1994 book To Train Up a Child, which encouraged parents to use various types of corporal punishment, such as spanking or hitting with a rod.

In the Prime Video docuseries Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets, a former member of the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP) – a Christian religious group the Duggars were heavily involved with – said the training was common for babies around six months old.

"You put something they want, just outside of reach, off the blanket. And when they go to reach for it, you hit them," they said in the documentary. "And if they continue to reach for it, you hit them again. The idea is that you’re breaking the rebellious spirit they are born with."

Amy Duggar, Jim Bob's niece, also claimed blanket training involved physical punishment.

In a TikTok live that was later reshared to Instagram, the mother-of-one, who shares son Daxton, 6, with her husband, Dillon King, was visibly emotional as she spoke against the method, claiming it teaches a child from a very young age that if he gets off the blanket, he will get "hurt" and "spanked."

Back in 2020, she also clarified there would be "no blanket training" happening at her home.

"I want my child to roam free and to feel safe doing so!" she captioned a selfie. "Children need love and acceptance and praise! They shouldn't ever be controlled. And there's a fine line between redirection and abuse. Our child will not grow up being fearful!"

The famed fundamentalist family is once again under the microscope after Joseph, 31, was arrested in connection with allegations that he'd molested a 9-year-old child back in 2020.

Due to the nature of the accusations, a CPS investigation was sparked. Upon searching Joseph and his wife Kendra's home, it was discovered there were locks on the outside of their children's bedroom doors.

He and Kendra, were both charged with four counts of endangering the welfare of a child and four counts of false imprisonment.