Health-related physical fitness is an important risk factor of cardiovascular disease. While previous studies have identified children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) to be less physically fit than typically developing (TD) peers, there is limited longitudinal research in this area. This study was undertaken to evaluate concomitant…

This paper presents the first ever group study of specific language impairment (SLI) in users of sign language. A group of 50 children were referred to the study by teachers and speech and language therapists. Individuals who fitted pre-determined criteria for SLI were then systematically assessed. Here, we describe in detail the performance of 13…

The objective is to examine underlying associations between childhood fears, behavior problems and neurobehavioral functioning (NBF) in school-age children. Healthy, regular school children (N = 135), from second, fourth and sixth grade classes were assessed. Data regarding children's fears and behavioral problems were obtained with the Revised…

Current clinical diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) occurs between 3 and 4 years of age, but increasing evidence indicates that intervention begun earlier may improve outcomes. Using secondary analysis of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort data set, the current study identifies early predictors prior to the diagnosis of…

This article analysed the acoustic structure of voiced stop ++ vowel sequences in a group of persons who stutter (PWS). This phonetic unit was chosen because successful production is highly dependent on the differential tweaking of right-to-left anticipatory coarticulation as a function of stop place. Thus, essential elements of both speech motor…

In three separate manipulations, a group of children at risk for developmental coordination disorder (DCD; five males, seven females; mean age 11y 6mo [SD 6.8mo] who were at or below the 15th percentile on the Movement ABC) and a group of typically developing children (TDC; seven males, five females; mean age 11y 3mo [SD 6.8mo]) judged the limit…

Background: My theoretical background draws on physical education (PE) clinical didactics. It questions the specific nature of this academic subject matter, how it is transmitted and how it is internalized considering teachers' individuality. I intend to describe and understand how newly qualified and experienced PE teachers interact with their…

Aim: Children with congenital heart disease (CHD) are at risk of developing neurocognitive problems. However, as these problems are usually identified after cardiac surgery, it is unclear whether they resulted from the surgery or whether they pre-existed and hence might be explained by complications and events associated with the heart disease…

Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the stability of motor problems in a clinically referred sample of children with, or at risk of, autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), attention-deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and/or developmental coordination disorder (DCD). Method: Participants were 49 children (39 males, 10 females; mean age 5y…

Embodied views of cognition propose that concepts are grounded in sensorimotor experience. Diverse aspects of sensorimotor experience, like action and context information, could play a key role in the formation and processing of manipulable object concepts. Specifically, contextual information could help to link specific actions experienced with…

A critical aspect of perception-action coupling is the ability to modify ongoing actions in accordance with variations in the environment. Infants' ability to modify their gait patterns to walk down shallow and steep slopes was examined at three nested time scales. Across sessions, a microgenetic training design showed rapid improvements after the…

The use of functional magnetic resonance imaging on a group of pediatric subjects with obsessive compulsive disorder reveals that this group has reduced activity in neural regions underlying emotional processing, cognitive processing, and motor performance as compared to control subjects.

For this study, we investigated the effects of self-controlled practice on learning multiple motor skills. Thirty participants were randomly assigned to self-control or yoked conditions. Participants learned a three-keystroke pattern with three different relative time structures. Those in the self-control group chose one of three relative time…

According to the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health model endorsed by the World Health Organization, activity (the execution of a task or action by an individual), and participation (involvement in a life situation) are important components in the assessment of health and functioning of an individual. The purpose of…

Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of early childhood stunting (height for age 2SD or more below reference values) and interventions on fine motor abilities at 11 to 12 years, and the relationship between fine motor abilities and school achievement and intelligence. Method: A cohort of stunted children who had participated in…