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The synergistic effect of poor motor coordination, gender and age on self-concept in children: A longitudinal
Denver M Y Brown1, John Cairney2
1Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education, University of Toronto, 55 Harbord St., Toronto, Ontario, M5S 2W6, Canada.
Insights
Children at risk for Developmental Coordination Disorder (rDCD) experience lower self-perceptions, particularly girls. Age amplifies these gender and rDCD-related differences in athletic, academic, and physical domains.
Area of Science:
- Child Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Motor Development
Background:
- Childhood self-concept is a key psychosocial outcome influenced by factors like gender, motor skills, and age.
- Understanding these influences is crucial for identifying and supporting children's psychosocial development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the synergistic effects of poor motor coordination (risk for Developmental Coordination Disorder [rDCD]), gender, and age on children's self-concept and self-worth.
- To determine if these factors interact to impact specific domains of self-perception.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study of 1978 children from grade 4 over 4 years.
- Utilized the Self-Perception Profile for Children to assess self-concept across multiple domains.
- Identified children at risk for DCD (rDCD) using the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency (≤15th percentile).
Main Results:
- A significant three-way interaction (rDCD, gender, age) was found for athletic ability, physical appearance, and academic competence.
- Children at risk for DCD, especially girls, showed the lowest developmental trajectories in these domains.
- Boys at risk for DCD also reported lower self-perceptions in athletic, academic, and physical areas compared to typically developing peers.
Conclusions:
- Age exacerbates gender and rDCD-related disparities in self-perceptions of athletic, physical, and academic abilities.
- These domain-specific differences did not significantly impact children's global self-worth.
- Findings highlight the complex interplay of motor coordination, gender, and age in shaping children's multifaceted self-concept.
Background:
Self-concept is a critical psychosocial outcome in childhood that is shaped by many factors. Gender, motor coordination and age have been identified as three important contributors.
Aim:
The present study examined whether poor motor coordination (i.e., being classified as at risk for Developmental Coordination Disorder [rDCD]), gender and age have a synergistic effect on domains of self-concept and self-worth in children.
Methods:
Data were derived from the Physical Health and Activity Study Team longitudinal open cohort project. Children enrolled in grade 4 (Mage = 9.88 ± 0.35) at baseline (n = 1978) completed the Self-Perception Profile for Children 7 times over 4 years to evaluate their competence across multiple domains. The Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency - Short Form was completed once to evaluate children's motor coordination. Participants scoring ≤15th percentile were classified as rDCD.
Results:
A significant 3-way interaction between rDCD, gender and age was observed for athletic ability, physical appearance and academic competence, but not social competence, behavioural conduct or global self-worth. Findings revealed developmental trajectories for self-perceptions of athletic ability, physical appearance, and academic competence were lowest among rDCD girls. Boys classified as rDCD also demonstrated lower athletic, academic and physical self-perceptions in comparison to typically developing children.
Conclusions:
Age intensifies disparities in self held athletic, physical and academic perceptions attributable to differences in gender and rDCD status, however, differences in these domains appear to be independent of children's overall views of themselves.
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