Does Perception of Motor Competence Mediate Associations between Motor Competence and Physical Activity in Early Years Children?

Abstract

Objectives: To examine if the relationship between physical activity (PA) and actual motor competence (MC) in British early years children is mediated by their perceived MC. Design: Cross-sectional convenience observational study. Methodology: MC was assessed with six locomotor skills (LC) and six object-control skills (OC) via the Test of Gross Motor Development-2. PA was measured via a wrist-worn triaxial accelerometer and PA grouped as daily total PA (TPA) and moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA). Perceived MC was assessed using the Pictorial Scale of Perceived Competence and Acceptance for Young Children. A total of 38 children (63% male; 37% female) aged between 3 and 6 years (5.41 ± 0.69) completed all assessments. Mediating impacts of perceived MC on the relationships between PA and MC were explored via backwards mediation regressions. Results: There were no mediating impacts of perceived MC on the relationship between PA and actual MC. Conclusions: The relationship between actual MC and PA is not mediated by perceived MC in a small sample of British early years childhood.

Association between fundamental motor skills and physical activity in the early years: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…Nineteen papers 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 met the inclusion criteria and were included in the review. Fourteen cross-sectional studies 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 were included in the meta-analyses, and 4 longitudinal studies 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 were included in the narrative synthesis. One study 17 presented both cross-sectional and longitudinal data; the cross-sectional data were included in the meta-analysis, and the longitudinal data were included in the narrative analysis.…”

“…Table 1 summarizes the 19 studies included in the review. All studies were published in English between 2004 and 2018 and were conducted in 8 countries: UK ( n = 4), 20 , 23 , 28 , 32 USA ( n = 5), 24 , 29 , 33 , 36 , 37 Switzerland ( n = 3), 22 , 35 , 38 Greece ( n = 1), 31 Finland ( n = 2), 19 , 21 Australia ( n = 2), 17 , 30 South Africa ( n = 1), 34 and Denmark ( n = 1). 18 No studies were conducted on the continents of South America or Asia.…”

“…18 No studies were conducted on the continents of South America or Asia. Seventeen studies were conducted in preschool settings, 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 24 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 1 study in a primary school setting, 23 and 1 study did not state where the data collection was carried out. 17 Overall, the cross-sectional studies included 2578 participants, and the longitudinal studies included 1239 participants.…”

“…Authors were contacted if they had measured the association between FMS and PA using regression analyses but had not reported the Pearson correlation ( r ) values. Eight of the authors contacted 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 provided the information required. One author could not be contacted and was excluded from the analysis.…”

The Relationship between Neuromuscular Control and Physical Activity in the Formation of the Visual-Psychomotor Schemes in Preschools

“…Controlling the action of the body and the hands is possible due to the level of intelligence, managing to give rise to the coordination process. This intelligence time concerns the actions performed by both the gross and the fine movements in which the body engages [ 20 ].…”