Gamified Physical Timers: Multiple Baseline Study of the Attention Support Apparatus

Abstract

Gamification is a promising strategy for sustaining student motivation. Most implementations rely on screen-based platforms that become sources of distraction, particularly with adolescent learners. This research provides a proof-of-concept investigation of the Attention Support Apparatus (ASA), a physical device that embeds gamification into the Pomodoro Technique to sustain learner attention and motivation over extended study periods. The idea is to preserve what gamification does well while taking it off multi-function devices and putting it on a dedicated apparatus. The ASA rewards learners with visual Pomodoro Points which are displayed on a monochrome E-ink screen. Pomodoros are earned after each completed 25-minute focused learning interval. A multiple baseline single-case design was employed across senior high school students who self-identified as having difficulty sustaining attention. The research is framed as design-based research (DBR), a methodology that integrates intervention design with the study of real-world learning contexts. As a feasibility investigation using self-reported Likert data from a small sample (N = 5) with no control group, the findings should be interpreted with caution and cannot establish efficacy. Although a co-inventor of the Taiwan patent underlying the ASA, the researcher holds no assigned rights or commercial interests. The results indicated a level shift in self-reported Task Focus and Perceived Helpfulness for four of the five participants once the apparatus was introduced. Participant E’s lower score suggests that individual differences may affect the efficacy of ASA. A larger-scale controlled study is warranted to establish efficacy and explore when tangible gamification works best.