Evaluating the efficacy of using a novel gaze-based attentive user interface to extend ADHD children’s attention span

Abstract

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurobiological condition that often affects school children. A major symptom is short attention span, which may negatively influence their academic performance, specifically in those tasks that require concentration. Extending the attention span for those children could help them do better in school and in life. In this work, we propose a novel gaze-based visual attentive interface designed with the three common text color schemes of highlighting, contrast, and sharpening/blurring for the purpose of extending ADHD children’s attention span in performing reading tasks. This design is based on the optimal stimulation theory stating that children with attention and hyperactivity disorders seek the optimum stimulation and attend to the task presenting extra stimulation. Children’s attention state is monitored by a webcam for eye tracking, while mouse tracking was used as the second modality for gaze prediction because some children had difficulties in maintaining the calibration of webcam. Visual color schemes are applied to evaluate different ways of maintaining attention in the process of reading. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of such a novel interface with two fixation-based metrics – the number of read words and the total time spent in reading text – to measure attention span. The results show that these children performed better in the presence of any color scheme in comparison with using no color, with highlighting the most effective, followed by contrast and then sharpening/blurring. These findings are independent of the tracking modalities and confirm the viability of using a gaze-based attentive user interface designed with adaptive color schemes to extend ADHD children’s attention span.