Construct validation of a general movement competence assessment utilising active video gaming technology

Abstract

Introduction: The assessment of children’s motor competence is an important concern as physical inactivity has been linked with poor movement quality and aspects of well-being such as low self-esteem. The General Movement Competence Assessment (GMCA) is a new instrument that was developed using active video gaming technology.Methods: Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to examine the internal validity of the GMCA in a sample of 253 typically developing children (135 boys and 118 girls), aged 7–12 years old (9.9 ± 1.6 years). Further, a second-order confirmatory factor analysis examined how the four constructs fit onto the higher-order variable of movement competence.Results: Results revealed that the first-order four-construct model of the GMCA was a good fit (CFI 0.98; TLI 0.98; RMSEA 0.05). The second-order confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the four constructs loaded directly onto movement competence. It accounted for 95.44% of the variance which is approximately 20% more than the first-order model. The internal structure of the GMCA identified four constructs of movement competence (i.e., stability, object-control, locomotion and dexterity) based on the study sample.Discussion: Performance trends in the general movement competence assessment support empirical evidence that movement competence improves as children age. Results suggest that active video games have considerable potential to help assess general motor competency in the wider population. Future work may consider the sensitivity of motion-sensing technologies in detecting developmental changes over time.

Attentional Focus Strategies for Promoting Children’s Motor Learning: A Scoping Review With a Learner-Task-Environment Framework

“…Indeed, many authors of studies we reviewed acknowledged that the ecological validity of movement tasks and training conditions should be enhanced in future research (e.g., Bahmani et al, 2021; Ghorbani et al, 2020). It has also been emphasized in recent research that fundamental movement skills should not be viewed as discrete isolated tasks (Ng & Button, 2023). While the importance of fundamental movement skills is well established, future research regarding attentional focus instructions and feedback with children should consider play- or game-based contexts rather than studying movement skills in isolation.…”