Development of basic motor competencies and connections with sport participation

Abstract

Introduction During childhood, children develop their motor competencies. Basic motor competencies (BMC) are a central prerequisite for participation in sport activities (Herrmann et al., 2016) and form the basis for sport-specific skills (Hulteen et al., 2018). In school, children have a choice of formal (e.g. sports club) and informal (free play) settings in which they can engage in sports activities (Neuber & Golenia, 2018). Children who are active in sports clubs have a higher level of BMC (Herrmann et al., 2017). Methods As part of the longitudinal study “Development of basic motor competencies in childhood (EMOKK-study)”, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF), the BMC of N = 659 preschool children (51% boys) and N = 393 1st and 2nd grade children (49.4% boys) were assessed at two measurement points. In addition, parent questionnaires were used to assess the children’s sport participation. In initial analyses, the development of BMC was calculated using ANCOVA, with age as a covariate. Results Differences between girls and boys could be observed in preschool as well as in 1st and 2nd grade. Boys showed better performance in “object-movement” whereas girls were better in “self-movement”. From first to second grade, sports club participation increased (F(1, 467) = 28.546, p < .001, η2 = .058). In both measurement points, boys were more often active in sport clubs than girls. First and second graders who were active in a sports club performed significantly better in both competence areas (“object-movement”: t1: p < .001, d = .42; t2: p < .001, d = .68; “self-movement”: t1: p = .002, d = .38; t2: p = .001, d = .40) than children who were not. Discussion Children who were active in club sports show a higher level of BMC, which seems to persist in the longitudinal section. This indicates an early selection effect and the importance of BMC for club sport. In further analyses, variables on informal sport activities will also be considered.