Inducing Calmness With Pocket-Sized Robotics: Reducing Movement and Heart Rate in Children through Hand-Held Tactile Interactions

Abstract

Periods of heightened arousal or restlessness can interfere with children's ability to focus, self-regulation, and physically calm. Technologies that encourage embodied self-regulation through tactile interaction may provide a simple and accessible means of promoting calmness. This paper investigates how interaction with a pocket-sized tactile device influences physiological and behavioral markers of calmness in typically developing children. Building on prior work examining heart rate modulation, we present new findings on how tactile interaction affects full-body movement and postural stability. We employ a device that engages children through a hand-held rhythmic vibration-matching game, designed to focus attention and encourage stillness. Eighteen children participated in a within-subjects study that involved two conditions: with and without tactile interaction with a hand-held device, while having their heart rate and body movement recorded. Results show that the tactile game interaction reduced physiological arousal (heart rate decreased by 3.56 bpm, p < 0.01) and physical restlessness (overall movement decreased by 38%, p < 0.05), with attention-related body regions showing the greatest change toward stillness (45% reduction in movement). These findings demonstrate that brief tactile game-like engagement with a hand-held device can down-regulate physiological activation, promoting the calm and focused states toward sustained attention and behavior regulation.