Identifying Developmental Motor Difficulties: A Review of Tests to Assess Motor Coordination in Children

Abstract

The latest guidelines recommend early identification of children with motor impairments using a standardized norm-referenced test. Motor coordination difficulties in developmental age have been studied extensively over recent years, with experimental literature on developmental coordination disorder (DCD) suggesting that motor proficiency assessments depend on the nature of the task at hand. In this article we reviewed 14 assessment tools to measure movement performance in childhood and adolescence, which are often referred to in an international context. This updated review aims to compare motor tests depending on a) the nature of the tasks included in the battery (i.e., questionnaire and clinical examination), b) psychometric properties, and c) cultural adaptation to relevant developmental norms. Finally, implications for diagnosis and clinical practice are discussed. Considering there are several tests used for DCD, it is important to better define their reliability and validity in different cultures in order to better compare the validation studies and select the most appropriate test to use in the assessment procedure.

Investigating Gait, Movement, and Coordination in Children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders: Is There a Role for Motor Abnormalities in Atypical Neurodevelopment?

“…As a parent questionnaire investigating child’s difficulties in day-to-day functioning, it has the double advantage to collect information from the most reliable respondents to report developmental problems of the child and in the context of an extensive observation of the impact of potential coordination difficulties on daily living tasks [ 38 ]. Results extend previous literature regarding the usefulness of such self-report questionnaires as integration of motor performance batteries and instruments in order to help the healthcare professional to paint a complete picture of the child motor functioning [ 44 ].…”

Gross Motor Coordination: We Have a Problem! A Study With the Körperkoordinations Test für Kinder in Youth (6–13 Years)

“…For this reason, stability begins to develop early in life and often children who are exposed to a variety of movement experiences have no difficulty developing fundamental stability abilities (2). Several literature reviews (1,(36)(37)(38)(39) identify a second obstacle in the coordination study: the lack of a reference test shared by the entire scientific community. Several tests' batteries have been proposed and validated, some with the specific purpose of identifying subjects with coordination difficulties, others for measuring different aspects of coordination, others still applicable to FMS.…”

Neurodevelopmental atypisms in the context of joint hypermobility, hypermobility spectrum disorders, and Ehlers–Danlos syndromes

“…DCD refers to difficulties in the acquisition and execution of coordinated motor skills, which are below the expected for age and learning opportunities (Cancer, Minolti, Crepaldi, & Antonietti, 2020). These problems interfere significantly with academic achievement and dailyliving activities (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).…”