Motor Performance in School-Aged Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Effects of an Extracurricular Physical Education program and socio-ecological correlates

Salvador-Garcia, Celina; Chiva-Bartoll, Oscar; Belaire-Meliá, Ana; Valverde-Esteve, Teresa

doi:10.1007/s10882-021-09802-z

ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Published: 21 June 2021

Motor Performance in School-Aged Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Effects of an Extracurricular Physical Education program and socio-ecological correlates

Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities volume 34, pages 355–372 (2022)Cite this article

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Abstract

A high rate of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have impaired psychomotor development. To date, these children have had few opportunities to participate in extracurricular Physical Education programs. However, nowadays a number of intervention programs are arising with the aim of improving their motor performance. The objectives of this study were (1) to analyze the effects on motor performance of an extracurricular Physical Education program implemented in children with ASD, and (2) to examine whether certain sociodemographic variables and learning-related difficulties are associated with motor performance. a quasi-experimental design was used with 31 participants (experimental group: n = 17; 13 boys, 4 girls) (control group: n = 14; 12 boys, 2 girls) with ASD between 4 and 16 years old. On the one hand, the level of motor performance was evaluated with the Movement Evaluation Battery for Children-2nd edition (MABC-2). On the other hand, the parents provided sociodemographic information about the participants through a questionnaire. after carrying out the intervention program, the experimental group obtained statistically significant better results in the variables of manual dexterity and balance. Furthermore, the correlation analysis of sociodemographic variables and learning-related difficulties suggests that age, type of diagnosis, need for educational support, and traits such as impulsivity and hyperactivity are factors related to the motor domain of the population with ASD. The findings highlight significant improvements, showing the need to address these difficulties to stimulate and encourage the development of children with ASD from an early age.

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Data Availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author O, C-B. The data are not publicly available due to ethical restrictions (they contain information that could compromise the privacy of research participants).

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the UJI-A2017-03 funding project, professional services for manuscript revision and editing assistance, and especially all the participants involved in the study.

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Universidad Internacional de La Rioja, Logroño, Spain
Celina Salvador-Garcia
University Jaume I, Av. V. Sos Baynat, s/n 12071, Castellón, Spain
Oscar Chiva-Bartoll & Ana Belaire-Meliá
University of Valencia, Av. dels Tarongers, 4, 46022, Valencia, Spain
Teresa Valverde-Esteve

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Celina Salvador-Garcia
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Oscar Chiva-Bartoll
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Ana Belaire-Meliá
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Teresa Valverde-Esteve
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Correspondence to Oscar Chiva-Bartoll.

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Salvador-Garcia, C., Chiva-Bartoll, O., Belaire-Meliá, A. et al. Motor Performance in School-Aged Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Effects of an Extracurricular Physical Education program and socio-ecological correlates. J Dev Phys Disabil 34, 355–372 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-021-09802-z

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Accepted: 02 June 2021
Published: 21 June 2021
Issue Date: April 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-021-09802-z

Keywords

ASD
MABC-2
Motor performance
Motor development