Physical activity and motor skills in children: A differentiated approach
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Date
2021-05
Publication Type
Journal Article
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yes
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Abstract
Being physically active plays an essential role in a child's physical development. While there is ample evidence for a positive association between physical activity (PA) and motor skills in children, the question of how PA should be implemented to optimally foster motor skill proficiency is less clear. To address this gap, the current longitudinal study compared four groups of children with different patterns of leisure-time PA engagement—namely children engaging in either structured PA, unstructured PA, a combination of structured and unstructured PA, or no PA at all—with respect to their gross and fine motor skill development. Results of repeated measures mixed modeling procedures revealed that engaging in structured PA—either exclusively or in combination with unstructured PA—is beneficial for children's gross motor development, whereas engaging in unstructured PA lacks such effectiveness. As to fine motor skills, a beneficial tendency of structured PA was observed as well. Hence, PA seems to be beneficial for motor skill development particularly when implemented in a formal setting with guided opportunities for practice. In conclusion, regularly engaging in structured PA constitutes a promising way to promote motor skills and support motor development over the long term.
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Publication status
published
Editor
Book title
Journal / series
Volume
54
Pages / Article No.
101916
Publisher
Elsevier
Event
Edition / version
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Date collected
Date created
Subject
Physical activity; Structured leisure activity; Gross motor skills; Fine motor skills; Children; Longitudinal; Mixed modeling
Organisational unit
09590 - Kapur, Manu / Kapur, Manu