Author(s): Antunes, António Manuel Marques ; Maia, José António Ribeiro ; Gouveia, Élvio R. ; Thomis, Martine Ann ; Lefevre, Johan Aimé ; Teixeira, Alexandra Q. ; Freitas, Duarte Luís de
Date: 2016
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.13/1302
Origin: DigitUMa - Repositório da Universidade da Madeira
Subject(s): Biological maturation; Children; Co-ordination; Skills; Tracking; Portugal; .; Faculdade de Ciências Sociais
The knowledge about intra- and inter-individual variation can stimulate attempts at description, interpretation and prediction of motor co-ordination (MC). Aim: To analyse change, stability and prediction of motor co-ordination (MC) in children. Subjects and methods: A total of 158 children, 83 boys and 75 girls, aged 6, 7 and 8 years, were evaluated in 2006 and re-evaluated in 2012 at 12, 13 and 14 years of age. MC was assessed through the Kiphard-Schilling’s body co-ordination test and growth, skeletal maturity, physical fitness, fundamental motor skills (FMS), physical activity and socioeconomic status (SES) were measured and/or estimated. Results: Repeated-measures MANOVA indicated that there was a significant effect of group, sex and time on a linear combination of the MC tests. Univariate tests revealed that group 3 (8–14 years) scored significantly better than group 1 (6–12 years) in all MC tests and boys performed better than girls in hopping for height and moving sideways. Scores in MC were also higher at follow-up than at baseline. Inter-age correlations for MC were between 0.15–0.74. Childhood predictors of MC were growth, physical fitness, FMS, physical activity and SES. Biological maturation did not contribute to prediction of MC. Conclusion: MC seemed moderately stable from childhood through adolescence and, additionally, inter-individual predictors at adolescence were growth, FMS, physical fitness, physical activity and SES.
