Performance consistency in various motor assessments performed
by children with Developmental Coordination Disorder
Developmental
Motor Cognition
Lab
INTRODUCTION
• Children with Developmental Coordination
Disorder (DCD) have low motor skills that
include marked delays in achieving motor
milestones, poor balance, low coordination and
handwriting difficulties.
• Because of the heterogeneous nature of this
condition and its comorbidity with other
disorders, it is difficult to develop a single
profile of motor skill deficiencies in children
with DCD and it remains unclear how a
particular child with DCD may perform in an
array of motor assessment batteries.
PURPOSE
• The purpose of our experiment was to compare
performance of children diagnosed with DCD
through the use of three different assessments
of motor skills.
METHODS
• 4 participants (3 males, 1 female), all children 7
years of age.
• DCD diagnosis involved parent referral and was
confirmed with screening tests:
• Kaufmann Brief Intelligence Test – 2nd ed.
(KBIT-2) – 2 average, 1 above average, 1
upper extreme
• Movement Assessment Battery for Children
– 2nd ed. (MABC-2) – all below the 2nd
percentile
• All children were assessed with the BOT-2,
TGMD-2, and Beery-VMI-6. The order of the
assessments was counterbalanced.
Jennifer Chuang, BBA & Dr. Priscila Caçola
Developmental Motor Cognition Lab, Department of Kinesiology,
The University of Texas at Arlington
METHODS
RESULTS
• Bruininks-Oserestsky Test of Motor Proficiency
– 2nd ed. (BOT-2):
1. Fine manual control (FMC):
• Fine motor precision - 7 items
• Fine motor integration - 8 items
2. Manual coordination (MC):
• Manual dexterity - 5 items
• Upper-limb coordination - 7 items
3. Body coordination (BC):
• Bilateral coordination - 7 items
• Balance - 9 items
4. Strength and agility (SA):
• Running speed and agility - 5 items
• Strength - 5 items
All composites are combined resulting in a total
motor composite (TMC) score providing a
general measure of motor ability.
• Test of Gross Motor Development –
ed.
(TGMD-2):
• Locomotor (LM) - run, gallop, hop, leap,
horizontal jump, slide
• Object Control (OC) - striking a stationary
ball, stationary dribble, catch, kick, overhand
throw, underhand roll
2nd
• Beery-Buktenica Developmental Test of VisualMotor Integration – 6th ed. (Beery-VMI –6):
• Visual Motor Integration (VMI) - 30 Items
• Visual Perception (VP) - 30 Items
• Motor Coordination (MC) - 30 Items
RESULTS
Table 1. Participant Percentiles and Categories for
BOT-2
Child 1
Child 2
Child 3
Child 4
FMC
10th, Below 31st,
Average
Average
7th, Below 3rd, Below
Average
Average
MC
42nd ,
Average
5th, Below 10th ,
Average
Below
Average
BC
10th, Below 14th, Below 5th, Below 5th, Below
Average
Average
Average
Average
SA
14th, Below 27th,
Average
Average
TMC
10th, Below 8th, Below 5th, Below 1st, Well
Average
Average
Average
Below
Average
2nd, Well
Below
Average
18th,
Average
<1st , Well
Below
Average
Table 2. Participant Percentiles and Categories for
TGMD-2
Child 1
Child 2
Child 3
• The comprehensiveness of the BOT-2 showed
each child’s unique strengths and weaknesses. Of
all tests, children had the most difficulties with
the TGMD-2, demonstrating that gross motor skill
performance, though not part of the DCD
diagnosis, is a good indicator of motor difficulties.
VMI scores confirmed the specific difficulties with
manual coordination, as children did not have
problems with the visual perception scale
Child 4
LM
9th
9th
9th
<1st
OC
1st
1st
1st
2nd
Overall
<1st,
Very Poor
<1st,
Very Poor
<1st,
Very Poor
<1st,
Very Poor
Table 3. Participant Percentiles and Categories for
Beery-VMI-6
Child 1
Child 2 Child 3 Child 4
VMI
2.5th
(percentile)
42nd
34th
30th
VP
Average
Average
High
MC
Below
Average
Below
Average
Below
Average
Below
Average
Very Low
CONCLUSION
• In general, the results suggest that low
performance across an array of motor
assessments is consistent in children with
Developmental Coordination Disorder, regardless
of the type of the assessment.
• Comorbid behavioral and emotional issues
pervading the disorder causes difficulties
assigning a singular profile of motor skill
deficiencies to a child diagnosed with DCD.
However, consistent low performance in multiple
motor assessments can provide a pathway to
understanding additional similarities within the
disorder.
• Further studies are necessary to explore
detection and consistency of motor difficulties in
children with DCD.