Effects of a multilateral movement program on fundamental movement skills and self-regulation in children aged 3–8 years: a quasi-experimental study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55040/p188f042Keywords:
multilateral games, motor skills in children, executive function, fundamental movement skillsAbstract
This study aimed to analyze the effect of the Multilateral Field Activity training model on locomotor skills, object control skills, and self-regulation in children aged 3-8 years. The study employed a quasi-experimental design with a nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest involving two groups, namely the intervention group and the control group. The sample consisted of 60 children (30 boys and 30 girls) from kindergarten to lower elementary school levels. Locomotor and object control skills were measured using the Test of Gross Motor Development-Second Edition (TGMD-2), while self-regulation was measured using the Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders Revised (HTKS-R). The intervention program was modified based on previous scientific articles and was implemented for 8 weeks at 07:30 a.m., with a gradually increasing duration of 30-60 minutes. Each activity was performed for 3-6 repetitions with intervals of 45-60 seconds. Measurements were conducted at the pretest and posttest phases using standard assessment procedures, involving two trained raters. The MANCOVA results indicated a significant multivariate effect of group (sig. 0.000; ηp² = 0.483) and a significant effect of age (sig. 0.021; ηp² = 0.156), whereas the group × age interaction was not significant (sig. 0.501). The univariate tests showed that the group had a significant effect on the three dependent variables (locomotor ηp² = 0.439; object control ηp² = 0.436; self-regulation ηp² = 0.463). These findings indicate that multilateral field-based training can be an effective approach to support children’s holistic development in psychomotor and psychological aspects.
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