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The aim of this study was to compare two methodologies employed by the British Cycling talent identification program. Specifically, the authors investigated cyclists selected to represent GB cycling team at the London 2012 Olympics using (a) a traditional talent identification methodology (British Cycling Olympic Development Program), where selection is based upon race results and (b) a detection talent identification methodology (U.K. Sport Talent Team Program), which is a multi-Olympic event initiative that identifies athletic potential from physical and skill-based tests. To facilitate this comparison, the authors calculated the speed with which expertise was acquired. A Mann–Whitney U test (U = 16.0, p = .031) indicated that the speed of acquiring expertise was quicker in detection talent identification (Mdn = 5.4) than traditional talent identification (Mdn = 7.2). Practice started later with detection talent identification than with traditional talent identification (14.12 years vs. 11.23 years, respectively), which affected the period to excellence. Thus, detection talent identification resulted in an absence of early specialization, which suggests a critical period for attaining cycling expertise. The authors hypothesize a genetic basis of talent and propose that critical periods are important in detection talent identification programs.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of landmarks on learning basketball lay-up in beginners. Twenty-seven females (age = 20.30 ± 0.24 years, height = 164.37 ± 0.53 cm) participated in this study. They were assigned to three groups: no landmark group, colored landmark group, and black and white landmark group. All participants performed basketball lay-up for six sessions. The colored group and black and white group trained with the landmarks on the ground while the no landmark group trained without any landmarks based on a trainer instruction. Posttest was performed at the end of the last session of training and also in the retention test following 72 hr. All trials were assessed through 5-point Likert scales, ranging from 1 (very poor) to 5 (very good). The results showed that using landmarks significantly changed the lay-up pattern; however, these changes were not significant for color and lay-up shot accuracy.

Background: Children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) frequently have difficulties performing gross motor skills such as the overarm throw. Our study examines the differences in both qualitative and quantitative characteristics of overarm throwing for accuracy between typically developing (TD) and children with DCD. Methods: A total of 74 children (36 females/38 males) aged between 7 and 11 years, participated in this study. The authors used the Movement Assessment Battery for Children—second edition to assess motor impairment. In total, 37 (50%) met the criteria for DCD. Each participant completed 10 overarm throws for accuracy at a target. The authors assessed movement quality using the component approach (Roberton & Halverson, 1984) and quantity using target accuracy. Results: The analyses revealed significantly lower throwing accuracy in DCD versus TD children. Children with DCD also demonstrated fewer component combinations and lower developmental levels than their TD peers. Finally, product scores tracked with process scores. Discussion: Both qualitative and quantitative measures clearly showed that children with DCD are at a disadvantage in controlling a ball during overarm throwing. They used stability profiles that limited coordination variability. TD participants performed more combinations of higher developmental levels to achieve more accurate throws, suggesting they controlled variability to optimize the accuracy of their throws.

Children with CHARGE syndrome, an extremely complex, highly variable genetic disorder, are significantly delayed in the onset of their motor milestones in comparison with children without disabilities due to sensory and motor deficits as well as lengthy hospitalizations and reduced physical activity. Currently, the role of parents’ perceptions and participation in the motor development of their child with CHARGE is unknown. The purpose of this study was to examine the associations between parents’ perceptions and their child’s motor competence, comparing parents of children with and without CHARGE syndrome. Participants included 33 children with CHARGE and 38 children without disabilities. Parents completed the Child’s Movement Skills Research parent survey and children were assessed on their gross motor skills. Parental ratings of locomotor ability and time spent participating with their child predicted the locomotor, ball skill, and total motor skill scores in the CHARGE group. Control group parents’ rating of ball scores predicted ball skill and total skill scores. The results indicate that parents may play an important role in their child with CHARGE syndrome’s motor development. Parents who are more involved with their child’s movement activities can positively influence their motor competence.

This study aimed to translate the Pictorial Scale of Physical Self-Concept for Brazilian Children (PSPPS-BR) into the Brazilian-Portuguese language, conduct a transcultural adaptation of it, and investigate its validity. Method: The authors adopted the reverse translation procedures to obtain the PSPPS-BR’s Brazilian-Portuguese version. Three motor behavior experts assessed the scale items’ clarity and pertinence. Ten professionals participated in the face validity study. Children (N = 300; 150 girls and 150 boys; 8–10 years old; M _age = 9.0, SD = 0.81) were randomly selected from six schools in Brazil and assessed using the PSPPS-BR, the Pictorial Scale of Perceived Movement Skill Competence, and the Self-Perception Profile for Children. The children (N = 100) were reassessed for test–retest reliability. Results: High clarity and pertinence agreement among experts (content validity coefficient from 98.4% to 100%; Gwet’s agreement coefficient from .85 to 1.00, p < .001) and among professionals (content validity coefficient clarity: 83–100%, relevance: 90–100%) were obtained. The confirmatory factorial analysis showed adequate model fits (root mean square error of approximation = .067; comparative fit index = .968; Tukey–Lewis index = .949). Polychoric correlations showed an adequate internal consistency for total scale (α = .78) and items (alpha from .73 to .78). The intraclass coefficient correlation shown strong test–retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient > .95). Conclusion: The PSPPS-BR showed adequate validity and reliability for Brazilian children.

The development of performance, such as learning a new motor skill, can be represented in a performance curve. The shape of the performance curve is both of theoretical and practical relevance. Here, the author studied the interday performance of juggling over a period of 17 days in 112 college students. The results showed that 60% of participants followed an S-shaped performance curve with the inflection date on the 11th day, followed by a decelerated (20%), accelerated (14%), and linear curve (6%). As expected, except on Day 1, male participants performed at least 33% better than female participants on each practice day. Also as expected, learning performance was found to depend on the type of performance curve with the best learning performance exhibited by the linear group. The results further revealed that pooling all participants’ performance together without considering the percentage of each underlying type of performance curve would lead to biased, nonrepresentative results. Given the variety of the observed performance curves and the dominance of the S-shaped performance curve among them, coaches should continuously monitor the shape of an individual’s performance curve.

Although multiple review studies have supported the superior effects of an external compared with internal focus, these reviews are based on performance outcomes. Currently, the literature lacks knowledge regarding the effects of external/internal foci on individuals’ perceptions, which may provide further explanations for how attentional focus affects performance. Therefore, the present study conducted a systematic review of survey/questionnaire data of participants’ thoughts and emotions from laboratory studies. The authors used ERIC, SPORTDiscus, PsycArticle, CINAHL Plus, Health Source Nursing Academic edition, and PubMed search engines. Literature specific to external/internal focus effects on motor learning or performance were reviewed (N = 37). The results showed that participants generally adhered to the assigned attentional focus instruction and there was a trend that preference may affect the attentional focus effects, but the results were inconsistent regarding if attentional focus cues affected the magnitude of adherence and mental demands. There were substantial differences in methodologies and theoretical issues of measuring these data. Future studies should adopt inferential statistics, choose theoretically relevant questions in a priori manner, or, at minimum, propose a hypothesis for the selected question.

Purpose : To facilitate precise diagnosis and provide tailored treatment of postural anomalies in the pediatric population, appropriate assessments are essential. In light of the multicomponent structure of postural control, understanding underlying constructs of an assessment is valuable in selecting and interpreting assessments. This study investigates the construct validity of the Gaits and Stations variables in the Revised Physical and Neurological Examination of Subtle Signs, a measure used to evaluate standing postural control in youth with mild neurological deficits. Methods : Data were included from 350 healthy participants ages 10–19 years old. An exploratory factor analysis with varimax rotation was performed. Individual loadings of ≥0.4 were used for factor designation. Results : Three latent factors were identified and labeled, based on evidence, as dynamic stability, movement strategies/coordination, and underlying motor systems—musculoskeletal strength. Conclusions : These brief, easily administered Gaits and Stations measures of the Physical and Neurological Examination of Subtle Signs facilitate evaluation of three constructs of standing postural control relevant to youth with mild neuromotor impairments. This information will potentially assist in clinical practice to identify youth with postural control deficits and establish developmentally appropriate interventions and in research to refine understanding of pathology and the impact on components of postural control.

This paper aimed to investigate different dimensions of motor competence (MC) by using four commonly administered MC assessment tools (Test of Gross Motor Development-3, Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency-2 Short Form, Körperkoordinationtest Für Kinder, and Movement Assessment Battery for Children-2) in a sample of 184 girls (M _age = 8.61 years; SD = 1.21 years). This is the first study of its kind to shed light on different dimensions of MC, identifying them through rigorous and robust statistical analysis. The Delphi method was used to select the dimensions of MC. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to assess whether the dimensions loaded onto the same construct (i.e., MC). Face and content validity identified three dimensions of MC: fundamental motor skills, gross motor coordination, and motor abilities. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated an adequate fit for the final MC model with three dimensions. In this model, fundamental motor skills, gross motor coordination, and motor abilities loaded on the MC construct. The data reported present a revised definition of holistic MC, which comprises the level of motor abilities (physical proficiency and perceptual motor abilities) as well as gross motor coordination and fundamental motor skills proficiency, which underlie the performance of a wide range of tasks, including fine and gross motor activities in daily life.