MotivAider is a wearable, electronic device resembling a pager that emits silent vibration signals at programmed intervals to remind and urge users to make desired changes in their behavior, thinking, and habits. The device was invented by clinical psychologist Steve Levinson in the early 1980s, and sold by Behavioral Dynamics, Inc., a company he co-founded in 1987 in Thief River Falls, Minnesota, United States. Many noted uses of the MotivAider device are in health care and education settings where it has been the subject of independent peer reviewed studies, particularly dealing with interventions for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism. The MotivAider device was a precursor to the use of smartphones, wearables, and activity trackers for personal behavior modification.
History
Development
Steve Levinson, a clinical psychologist and author, created the MotivAider in the 1980s. After 16 years as the mental health director at Northwest Medical Center in Thief River Falls, he came up with the idea for an electronic behavior prompting device after observing that even highly motivated people had trouble following through on their good intentions and could benefit from being reminded frequently of what they intended to do. The initial prototype of a MotivAider device, which Levinson referred to as "an intention arousing device," consisted of a plastic soap dish containing off-the-shelf electronic and mechanical components. Levinson spent over six years refining the concept and behavior change method before developing a serviceable prototype, which was a small, battery-powered device physically resembling a pager that was capable of vibrating at intervals programmed by a user. By mentally associating a personal message with the private vibration signal produced by the device, a user could be frequently reminded and urged to take an action necessary to achieve the user's chosen goal or objective. Two of the development years were spent testing the device with people who had habits to break or desired behavior to encourage. The device allowed a user to set intervals ranging from one minute to 24 hours. The device has been likened to serving as a "private tap on the shoulder”.
Early production
The MotivAider device has been the sole product of Behavioral Dynamics, Incorporated—a privately held American company founded in 1987 and headquartered in Thief River Falls, Minnesota. In the mid 1980s, after developing and testing crude prototypes of the MotivAider, Levinson recruited several associates to form the corporation: Daryl Johnson, a Minnesota business person; William Priedeman, a marketing consultant; and Dr. Ronald Young, the former medical director at the Minnesota Department of Human Services. They raised $100,000 in 1987 from local investors and secured a $30,000 loan from the city of Thief River Falls to further develop, manufacture and begin selling MotivAider devices. The first MotivAider devices hit the market in the fall of 1988.
Influence
The device was the subject of a television infomercial in the 1990s, and Levinson appeared on several television shows, most notably ABC's 20/20 program in 2002, to discuss the problem the MotivAider device was intended to address, which is the problem people commonly have acting in accord with their own good intentions. The MotivAider device has been described as a precursor to standalone hardware products developed in the 2010s—such as KSafe, Pavlok, HabitAware, Upright Technologies, and Lumo Lift—for personal behavior modification.
Later development
A mobile application released by Behavioral Dynamics in 2013, later updated as "Virtual MotivAider," was said to provide smartphone users with some of the benefits of the MotivAider device. In 2019, Behavior Dynamics released a new model of the MotivAider device that included additional features and capabilities requested by behavior change professionals.
Technology
The MotivAider is a small, battery-operated device that has been described as a "grey box" that physically resembles a pager. The device can be set to vibrate at intervals from several seconds to 24 hours apart. Later models can be set to vibrate at average and/or random intervals. Vibration signals can be programmed to last from one to five seconds and at a chosen intensity and pattern. Users feel the silent pulsing vibration signal by wearing the device on a belt or waistband or carrying it in a pocket. A small LCD screen displays the countdown to the next prompt. A user adjusts the time interval and vibration signal properties by pressing buttons on the face of the device. The fifth generation MotivAider device measures tall by wide and thick. It weighs less than including the battery and a removable metal clip. The device is powered by a single AA battery and can accommodate a 1.5 volt AA lithium battery. The first two generations of the device were powered by a AAA battery.
Usage
Follow through
The MotivAider device was originally developed to help patients follow through with medically prescribed self-care. Private vibration signals were said to remind the user to stay focused on their intentions. Soon after its release, the device was also used to promote mental rehearsal and to facilitate non-clinical types of behavior modification, including early notable use by professional tennis playerRosalyn Fairbank to improve her backstroke. Other reported uses of the device included sports training, weight loss, smoking cessation, alleviating teeth grinding, and to facilitate treatment for stuttering. The device was commonly used to remind and urge users to act on their resolutions or goals.
Education settings
By the early 2000s, the MotivAider device gained acceptance in training and curricula for education professionals. Teachers found they could use the device to help students self-monitor on-task behavior and to help themselves remember to give positive feedback. Many classroom uses became the subject of empirical studies. The device was shown to be effective in increasing classroom on-task performance of students with autism. The device was also shown to be effective when used by caregivers and by children to improve the on-task performance of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
