The relationship between children's perceived and actual motor competence

Area of Science:

• Child Development
• Motor Skill Acquisition
• Sports Psychology

Background:

• Understanding the relationship between perceived and actual motor competence in children is crucial for effective physical education and sports programs.
• Previous research suggests potential discrepancies between how children view their abilities and their objective performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the correlation between children's perceived motor competence and their objectively measured actual motor competence.
• To explore the influence of age and gender on this relationship in children aged 9 to 11 years.

Main Methods:

• Administered the Motor Skill Perceived Competence Scale to 218 children (ages 9-11).
• Assessed actual motor competence using gross motor tests, with principal component analysis identifying upper-body and lower-body factors.
• Employed two-factor analysis of variance and regression analysis to examine differences and correlations.

Main Results:

• Boys demonstrated higher perceived and actual motor competence than girls.
• Lower-body motor competence increased with age across the 9-, 10-, and 11-year-old groups.
• Perceived motor competence was moderately correlated with actual competence and significantly predicted by both actual competence and age.

Conclusions:

• Children aged 9-11 possess the ability to assess their own motor competence, though with some inaccuracies.
• Actual motor competence and age are key predictors of perceived competence, irrespective of gender.
• Educators and coaches should consider children's self-perceptions while recognizing the need for accurate performance assessments.