Motor Competence as Key to Support Healthy Development of 3- to 5-Year-Old Children: An Expert Statement on Behalf of the International Motor Development Research Consortium
The first years of life are an optimal time for developing motor competence. However, the evidence regarding motor competence in early childhood is fragmented and needs to be clearly synthesized and presented. To establish effective evidence-based decision making in research, practice, and policy for the early years, this expert statement, on behalf of the International Motor Development Research Consortium, draws together what is currently known about 3- to 5-year-old children on (a) how skilled are children around the world, (b) the link between motor competence and healthy developmental outcomes, and (c) the capacity to improve children’s motor competence through intervention. This expert statement presents a summary of recent evidence for each of these specific points, followed by recommendations for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers.
Authors
- Patrizia Tortella (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2553-9163)
- Leah E. Robinson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9016-648X)
- Eileen Africa (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6794-0887)
- Nádia Cristina Valentini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6412-5206)
- Arja Sääkslahti (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4354-0990)
- Clarice Martins (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4947-9329)
- Michael Joseph Duncan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2016-6580)
- Glauber Carvalho Nobre (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3570-8493)
- E. Kipling Webster (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4235-139X)
- Lisa Michele Barnett (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9731-625X)
- Paulo Felipe Ribeiro Bandeira (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8260-0189)
Institutions
- Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (BR)
- Deakin University (AU)
- Universidade Federal da Paraíba (BR)
- Universidade do Porto (PT)
- Università degli Studi di Enna Kore (IT)
- Stellenbosch University (ZA)
- University of Michigan (US)
- Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Ceará (BR)
- Universidade Regional do Cariri (BR)
- Coventry University (GB)
- University of Tennessee at Knoxville (US)
- University of Jyväskylä (FI)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Journal of Motor Learning and Development
- Published
- 2024-09-30
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1123/jmld.2023-0055
- Citations
- 11
- Primary Topic
- Children's Physical and Motor Development
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 8.70