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Reliability and validity of a qualitative and quantitative motor test for 5- to 6-year-old children
Mariëlle Kroes1, Yvonne L J Vissers, Frans A M Sleijpen
1Department of Neurology, University Hospital Maastricht, P.O. Box 5800, 6202 AZ Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Insights
A new tool, Maastricht
Area of Science:
- Child Development
- Motor Skills Assessment
- Pediatric Neurology
Background:
- Childhood clumsiness can indicate future academic and psychological issues.
- Existing motor tests often neglect qualitative movement aspects crucial for early development.
- Assessing qualitative movement patterns is vital for understanding motor development in young children.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate the Maastricht's Motor Test (MMT) for 5- to 6-year-old children.
- To create a tool that assesses both qualitative and quantitative movement aspects.
- To provide a reliable measure for early identification of motor development variations.
Main Methods:
- The Maastricht's Motor Test (MMT) was developed, comprising 70 items across Static Balance, Dynamic Balance, Ball Skills, and Diadochokinesis/Manual Dexterity.
- Approximately 50% of MMT items focus on qualitative movement aspects, and 50% on quantitative aspects.
- Validation involved expert judgment, sensitivity/specificity analysis, and reliability testing (inter-rater, intra-rater, test-retest) with 487 children.
Main Results:
- The MMT demonstrated good validity and reliability, with Intra-class Correlation Coefficients (ICCs) for the qualitative total score ranging from 0.61 to 0.95.
- ICCs for the qualitative score were comparable to those for the quantitative score, indicating robust measurement.
- The MMT effectively objectifies both qualitative and quantitative movement characteristics in young children.
Conclusions:
- The Maastricht's Motor Test (MMT) is a valid and reliable tool for assessing both qualitative and quantitative motor skills in preschool children.
- The MMT can aid in identifying children at risk for developmental problems.
- Further research is needed to ascertain the specific value of qualitative observations in children with diagnosed developmental issues.
Abstract:
Clumsiness in preschool children may be a precursor to impaired academic performance and psychological and developmental problems. It is assumed that in this age group especially the qualitative aspects (=pattern) of a movement reflect variations in motor development. Currently available motor tests for this age group, however, mostly objectify quantitative aspects of a movement alone and do not objectify qualitative aspects. The aim of this study was to develop a new, valid, and reliable tool (Maastricht's Motor Test (MMT)) to objectify qualitative and quantitative aspects of movement in 5- to 6-year-old children. The test covers Static Balance (14 items), Dynamic Balance (20 items), Ball Skills (eight items), and Diadochokinesis and Manual Dexterity (28 items). About 50% of the items measure qualitative aspects and 50% quantitative aspects of movements. In total 487 subjects were recruited from the first year of primary school. To validate the test, one school doctor's global judgment was used as a form of expert validity. Sensitivity and specificity were calculated for different cut-off points. Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) of inter-rater (N = 42), intra-rater (N = 24), and test-retest (N = 43) agreement were determined. ICCs of the qualitative total score ranged from 0.61 to 0.95 and were comparable with those of the total quantitative score. The MMT can be used to objectify both qualitative and quantitative aspects of movements. The additional value of the qualitative observations has to be determined in children with various developmental problems.
