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Construct validation of a general movement competence assessment utilising active video gaming technology
Jonathan Leo Ng1, Chris Button2
1Department of Health, Physical Education, and Sport, School of Education, College of Design and Social Context, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology
|May 5, 2023
Summary
The General Movement Competence Assessment (GMCA), using video games, effectively measures children's motor skills. This tool identifies four key movement constructs, showing high internal validity and potential for widespread use in assessing childhood physical development.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric physical therapy
- Motor development research
- Sports science
Background:
- Childhood physical inactivity is linked to poor motor skills and reduced well-being.
- Assessing children's motor competence is crucial for early intervention.
- The General Movement Competence Assessment (GMCA) utilizes active video gaming technology.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the internal validity of the GMCA using confirmatory factor analysis.
- To assess the fit of the GMCA's four constructs onto a higher-order movement competence variable.
- To validate a novel instrument for measuring general motor competency in children.
Main Methods:
- Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) on a sample of 253 typically developing children (aged 7-12).
- First-order CFA to test the GMCA's four-construct model.
- Second-order CFA to evaluate the hierarchical structure of movement competence.
Main Results:
- The GMCA's four-construct model demonstrated good fit (CFI=0.98, TLI=0.98, RMSEA=0.05).
- The second-order model showed constructs loading directly onto movement competence, explaining 95.44% of the variance.
- Four constructs of movement competence were identified: stability, object-control, locomotion, and dexterity.
Conclusions:
- The GMCA exhibits strong internal validity for assessing general motor competence in children.
- Active video gaming technology offers a promising avenue for motor skill assessment.
- Movement competence generally improves with age, as supported by GMCA performance trends.
