Adaptations to Task Constraints in Catching by Boys with DCD

Abstract

One-handed catching behavior was studied in nine 6- to 8-year-old boys with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) and nine matched typically developing boys. The participants performed a catching task under two conditions. In the first condition, one ball speed was used while three ball speeds were randomly presented in the second condition. Boys with DCD showed a significantly smaller maximal hand aperture and a lower maximal closing velocity in both the first and the second condition; however, the temporal structure of the catch as well as the adaptations to the varying ball speeds did not differ between groups. This leads to the suggestion that the motor problems of boys with DCD in one-handed catching are not primarily due to debilitated visuo-perceptual or planning processes but are more likely caused by problems at the execution level.