Cross-Cultural Comparison of Fundamental Movement Skills of Children of Iranian Ethnicities.

Abstract

Cross-cultural studies can provide information on how different cultural contexts, lifestyles, and physical activity play a role in the development of motor skills. We aimed at a cross-cultural comparison of fundamental movement skills of children of Iranian ethnicities. The statistical population included boys and girls aged 7 to 9 years from the centers of Tehran (Persian), Lorestan (Lor), Khuzestan (Arab) and Kurdistan (Kurdish) provinces in 2021 year. Overall, 240 people (60 from each province) participated in this research as a sample. Ulric Gross Motor development test (2000) was used to measure the Fundamental Movement skills. Results of multivariate analysis of variance showed that the main effect of culture (ethnicity) and interaction of culture and gender on Loco motor and object control skills were significant (P=0/001). In the total score of fundamental movement skills, the results showed that boys children scored significantly higher than girls (P=0/001). Moreover, Lor and Kurdish children significantly performed better than Fars and Arab children (P=0/001), but no significant difference was observed between the other ethnicities (P=0/452). Differences in the levels of fundamental movement skills of children of different ethnicities may be due to different physical and cultural activities, attitudes, and motor habits.