Effects of testing context on ball skill performance in 5-year-old children with and without developmental delay

Physical therapists often test ball-playing skills of children with disabilities using standardized testing, which may not predict performance of ball skills in games with peers. This type of testing is used by physical therapists to determine whether children have delays in ball-handling skills. The purpose of this study was to compare ball skill performance of children with and without developmental delay in a one-to-one testing situation and in a structured game with peers.

Five-year-old children with developmental delay (n=20) and 5-year-old children without disabilities (n=20) participated in the study.

We used the Peabody Developmental Motor Scales receipt and propulsion scale to test children one-to-one with a therapist and during a structured game with peers.

Subjects without developmental delay performed better than subjects with developmental delay under both testing conditions. Children with developmental delay performed better in the one-to-one testing condition than in the game with peers. The performance of children without developmental delay did not differ under the 2 conditions. Boys performed better than girls.

Physical therapists should consider the potential effect of environment on the ball-handling skills of children with disabilities.