The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of overweight
stereotype threat on children?s motor learning. Twenty-four children (Mage =
9.25 ? 0.53 years) were conveniently selected and randomly assigned into two
groups of stereotype threat (with emphasis on individual characteristics,
namely, overweight) and control group. The task consisted of maintaining the
balance on the stabilometer during 30-second trials. One trial in the
pre-test, 10 trials in the acquisition phase and 5 trials in the retention
test were run. The findings revealed lower motor learning among the
overweight stereotype group compared to the control group. Therefore, it is
suggested that in similar situations, coaches can reduce stereotype threat
emphasizing on the ineffectiveness of individual characteristics, i.e.,
overweight on motor performance of children thereby prevent performance and
learning disruptions.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.