Object Control Skill Performance Across the Lifespan: A Cross Sectional Study.

Area of Science:

• Motor Development
• Human Movement Science
• Sports Science

Background:

• Object control skills (OCS) development is studied across different age groups, but often in isolation.
• Previous research frequently focused on single skills or limited outcome measures (process vs. product).

Purpose of the Study:

• To comprehensively explore object control skills (OCS) performance across distinct age groups: children, young adults, and older adults.
• To analyze both process-oriented outcomes and product-oriented measures in throwing, kicking, and catching.

Main Methods:

• 120 male participants were divided into three groups: children (7.96±1.22 years), young adults (23.5±2.34 years), and older adults (69.5±4.43 years).
• Process-oriented performance was assessed using the component approach for throwing, kicking, and catching.
• Throwing and kicking velocity were measured using a radar gun; catching success was quantified by the number of balls caught.

Main Results:

• Young adults demonstrated superior OCS component levels and significantly higher throwing and kicking velocities compared to children and older adults.
• Skill proficiency varied greatly, with young adults achieving mastery/advanced levels (63.6-100.0%), followed by older adults (10.0-95.0%), and children (6.4-32.1%).
• Moderate correlations were observed between developmental levels and throwing/kicking velocity or catching success across all age groups.

Conclusions:

• Children typically exhibit less advanced object control skills.
• Older adults show a decline in throwing and kicking performance but maintain catching ability compared to younger adults.
• These findings highlight age-related trajectories in fundamental motor skills and inform targeted interventions.