Developmental Coordination Disorder in Preschool-Aged Children: A Neuropsychological Perspective on Visuospatial
Katerina Asonitou1, Dimitra Koutsouki1, Thomas Kourtessis2
1Laboratory of Adapted Physical Activity/Developmental and Physical Disabilities, School of Physical Education and Sport Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 17237 Athens, Greece.
Insights
Children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) show significant attention and planning deficits compared to typically developing peers. These cognitive impairments correlate with motor skills, suggesting a holistic approach to DCD assessment and intervention.
Area of Science:
- Neuropsychology
- Developmental Pediatrics
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) affects motor skills in children.
- Neuropsychological functions like attention and memory are often impacted in DCD.
- Understanding these cognitive deficits is crucial for effective intervention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare neuropsychological functions (visuospatial working memory, attention, planning, decision-making) in preschool children with DCD versus typically developing (TD) peers.
- To assess specific attentional (selective, sustained, focused expressive) and working memory (visuospatial, visual/verbal) deficits.
- To examine the relationship between cognitive deficits and fundamental motor skills in children with DCD.
Main Methods:
- A comparative study involving Greek preschool-aged children.
- Cognitive Assessment System (CAS) used to evaluate cognitive processing (planning, attention, simultaneous processing).
- Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition (MABC-2) used to assess motor skills.
Main Results:
- Significant performance differences observed between DCD and TD children in attention and planning domains.
- Strong correlations found between cognitive and motor skills.
- High classification accuracy (e.g., 73.9% for receptive attention) using cognitive indices, indicating diagnostic value.
- Approximately one-third of children with DCD exhibited deficits in at least one cognitive domain.
Conclusions:
- Neuropsychological profiling is essential for understanding DCD.
- Targeted motor interventions may improve executive functions in children with DCD.
- A strength-based, holistic assessment approach, coupled with educator training and evidence-based programming, is recommended.
Abstract:
Background/Objectives: This study investigates specific neuropsychological functions-visuospatial working memory, attention, planning, and decision-making-among preschool-aged children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) compared to typically developing (TD) peers. The objective was to assess deficits in selective, sustained, and focused expressive attention, visuospatial and visual/verbal working memory, and decision-making abilities, and to examine their relationship with fundamental motor skills. Methods: A comparative study was conducted with Greek preschool-aged children using the Cognitive Assessment System (CAS) to evaluate cognitive processing (planning, attention, simultaneous processing) and the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition (MABC-2) to assess motor skills. Results: Significant performance disparities were identified between DCD and TD children across attentional and planning domains, with notable cognitive-motor correlations. Discriminant function analyses revealed high classification accuracy (e.g., 73.9% for receptive attention, 79.5% for simultaneous processing), reinforcing the diagnostic value of targeted cognitive indices. Notably, approximately one-third of the children with DCD (17 out of 44) exhibited deficits in one or more cognitive domains. Conclusions: These findings highlight the importance of neuropsychological profiling in understanding DCD and suggest that targeted motor interventions may simultaneously enhance executive function. A strength-based, holistic assessment approach is recommended, supported by educator training and evidence-based therapeutic programming.
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