Reliability and validity of age band 1 of the Movement Assessment Battery for Children--second edition

Area of Science:

• Child Development
• Motor Skills Assessment
• Psychometrics

Background:

• The Movement Assessment Battery for Children--Second Edition (MABC-2) is a widely used tool for evaluating motor development.
• Assessing the reliability and validity of the MABC-2 in diverse populations is crucial for its accurate application.
• Previous research has established the MABC-2's psychometric properties in various international contexts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the reliability and validity of the MABC-2, age band 1, specifically in Greek preschool children.
• To determine the test-retest reliability and internal consistency of the MABC-2 for this population.
• To examine the factorial validity of the MABC-2 using confirmatory factor analysis.

Main Methods:

• One hundred eighty-three Greek preschool children (36-64 months) participated.
• Test-retest reliability was assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC).
• Internal consistency was determined using Cronbach's alpha, and factorial validity was examined via confirmatory factor analysis.

Main Results:

• The MABC-2 demonstrated good test-retest reliability (ICC) for most items, with moderate reliability for the drawing trail task.
• Cronbach's alpha values for manual dexterity, aiming/catching, and balance were .51, .70, and .66, respectively.
• Confirmatory factor analysis indicated a satisfactory fit of the data to the MABC-2 model, with moderate item-total score correlations.

Conclusions:

• The MABC-2 (age band 1) is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing movement difficulties in Greek preschool children aged 3-5 years.
• The findings support the use of the MABC-2 in Greek clinical and educational settings for early identification of motor challenges.
• Further research could explore the MABC-2's sensitivity to change and its predictive validity in this specific population.