Arousal is all about alertness

Arousal at its simplest is how awake or alert or how tired you are.  It supports attention and focus.  There are a number of things which impact an individuals’ level of arousal.  This includes how well they have slept, their previous experiences and sensory inputs from the environment as well as their body.  In this post I will explore

  • What arousal is

  • Optimal arousal

  • Sensory inputs that might impact arousal

boy with jacket hood over head laughing text what is arousal
boy with jacket hood over head laughing text what is arousal

Arousal is all about alertness

Arousal at its simplest is how awake or alert or how tired you are.  It supports attention and focus.  There are a number of things which impact an individuals’ level of arousal.  This includes how well they have slept, their previous experiences and sensory inputs from the environment as well as their body.  In this post I will explore

  • What arousal is

  • Optimal arousal

  • Sensory inputs that might impact arousal

What is arousal?

The term arousal relates to how awake or alert or how tired you are.  Across a typical day it is very normal for alertness to fluctuate.  Students, and teachers, need to constantly adjust their levels of alertness throughout day and matching their arousal to the task and environment.

As a simplification, it can be helpful to think of arousal like steps, or a ladder.  At the bottom there is sleep.  At the top there is highly alert, agitated and stressed.  Somewhere in the middle there is alert and wakeful.  When alertness is too high or low, it is more difficult for individuals to access learning or to be successful at work.  Different activities also require different levels of arousal,. For example, arousal might be higher when playing a winning game of football compared to when writing an English essay. 

arousal steps changing from blue, green, yellow and red at the top, with deep sleep at the bottom and stressed at the top

Matching arousal with the environment and task

When considering arousal, it is important to note that there is no perfect level of arousal for every situation.  As I mentioned above, different activities will invoke different states of alertness.  In some environments, for example a library or cinema, it is expected that you would be quiet.  However, in other environments, for example a sporting match or playground, it is expected that you would be much louder and engaged.  Each environment has its own expectations and demands.

Tasks also require different levels of alertness  If you’re trying to get a baby to sleep, you will lower your level of arousal to help them sleep.  You might sing a lullaby but you typically wouldn’t start blaring loud music at them.  When playing a game of football, alertness levels need to be much higher to stay focussed and to keep up with the speed of the game.

Throughout the day, week and month every individual needs to adjust their level of arousal to match the environment and task.  This adjusting is sometimes called regulation.  Some individuals, particularly those with sensory differences, find this harder to do than others.  They may need more support to reach optimal arousal.

child holding a pen and looking up towards teacher
child holding a pen and looking up towards teacher

Optimal arousal

Optimal arousal the level of arousal which matches the environment and activity.  Sometimes it’s called ‘Just Right.’  At night time, optimal arousal is low enough to facilitate sleep.  At school, optimal arousal is when a student can focus and attended.  In the playground or at a party, it’s normal for optimal arousal to be a bit higher as there’s more movement and usually excitement.

Arousal and sensory processing

Students with sensory processing differences usually have more difficulty organising, or regulating, their level of alertness.

Sensitivity (Over-Responsivity)

For students who are more sensitive to sensations, typically sensory inputs from the classroom typically increase their arousal.  This includes everyday inputs like the school bell, students singing in assembly, or the feeling of glue on their fingers when sticking a sheet in their book.  They can also become quickly overwhelmed or overloaded by multiple sensory inputs.  This can result in behaviours like running away, refusing, avoiding, shutting down or having a meltdown.

Sometimes these students might seek sensations to help self-regulate.  They might use the sensory input from one sense to regulate another sense.  For example, they may make noise to drown out other noises in the environment.  Or, the might chew, or seek proprioceptive sensory input</strong> to help to calm down.

Slower Responses (Under-Responsivity)

Students who are slower to process sensory inputs from their environment tend to be more passive.  Their arousal level may be too low for the task at hand. They need additional time to register sensory inputs.  Often the sensory input needs to have a greater intensity for them to notice it.  Unfortunately, if these  students are quiet and passive, they do not cause disruption and can be missed in the classroom.  It is really important to look out for them, as they will also be less engaged with their learning.

The other behaviour you may see in children with lower levels of arousals is sensory seeking.  These children are seeking out extra sensation to try to increase their arousal arousal.  They might move about, or make noise, or touch things and fidget.  These students are typically identified quickly and referrals are made to seek out extra supports for them.

Jasper’s story

Jasper has some <strong>sensitivity to noise</strong>.  This makes it harder for him to attend in class.  Some sounds, like the lunch bell and the door slamming, make him startle.  This increases his arousal and it takes him longer to calm down and refocus.

Some strategies that his teachers use to help to support him are headphones, a quieter space for lunch time and heavy work.

What impacts a person’s level of arousal?

There are a number of things that impact our level of alertness.

Body Sensations

This includes hunger, illness and pain.  It is much harder to attend and stay focus if you are hungry.  It is equally as hard to focus if you have a headache.  These are usually grouped together under the heading of interoception.

Sleep

Levels of sleep also impact arousal.  When tired, arousal is often lower.  However, it can also become increased due to stress when tired as well.

Current Stressors

Existing stressors will also impact level of arousal.  If an individual is worried about an exam, or a parent is nursing a sick child, their arousal level will likely be higher.

Cumulative sensations

It’s important to remember is that arousal builds up over time.  This means that a sensitive individual might be able to manage a sensory input for short periods but over time their arousal will increase.  Some individuals might be able to manage and hold themselves together in one situation, such as assembly, but this could lead to a meltdown or shutdown afterwards if they have not been given time and space to decrease their arousal.  For individuals who are slower to process sensory inputs, it means that their arousal might take longer to increase compared to their peers.

Environmental Expectations

Each environment has an unwritten expected level of arousal.  Compare a library, sporting stadium, staff meeting, church, music concert and theatre show there are ‘expected’ arousal levels foe each.

Sensory Inputs

Each environment also has its own sensory inputs. These will impact an individual’s arousal.  Some people may find a sporting stadium too overwhelming, whereas others might love the energy and noise.

The Task

Next, the task or activity impacts arousal.  If it is a task the individual finds easy or one they are very familiar with, they will likely remain calm.  However, if it’s a more difficult or unfamiliar task arousal might increase.  A perfect example of this is exam time.  For some students, the exam conditions increases their stress level, or arousal, and this affects their performance.

Trauma

A final thing to consider is any trauma experiences the individual may have had.  Trauma wires the brain in a different way.  This means that individuals might be hyper alert to potential threats.  Or, they may be used to shutting down in order to protect themselves.  If there is a history of trauma it is recommended that advice is sought from trained professionals.

There are many things that impact on arousal.  Some might be obvious, like a loud sound.  However, some might not be something you can immediately observe.  Such as the child has not slept well or they are worried about a family member who is ill.

Discussing arousal and self-regulation in further depth

You can listen to me explore these concepts in further depth with Dale on the SENDcast here:

How to support optimal arousal

Supporting arousal will look different for each individual. Individuals with higher arousal will need sensory strategies to help to decrease their level of alertness.  Those who are slower to respond typically need more sensations to increase their arousal.  Children and adults need to contiually adjust their arousal level across the day in order to focus, attend and participate. There are many strategies that can be used to support this.  Sensory strategies are one option and I explore how to use them further in this post – Sensory regulation strategies – What are they?

If you are a teacher and would like specific ideas for the classroom, then this article will also be relevant Sensory Strategies and Supports for the Classroom.

I also also covers arousal and regulation in much further depth in my online trainingand my book Success with Sensory Supports.

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