Journal of Sports and Motor Development and Learning

Abstract  .
Introduction: The purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of training with different musical rhythms on bimanual movement coupling.
Methods: The participants were 48 students aged 15 to 17 years, randomly divided into three groups of 16 each. In the pre-test, they performed four bimanual tasks of varying difficulty, including circle-line drawing. During the training phase, only one task was practiced: drawing a circle with the right hand and a horizontal line with the left hand. Three training sessions were conducted, each consisting of 4 blocks of 10 trials lasting 30 seconds. During training, the first group listened to music with a tempo of 120 beats per minute (BPM), the second group listened to music at 90 BPM, and the third group trained without music (control group). Participants completed an immediate post-test, followed by retention and transfer tests 48 hours later. Statistical analysis was performed using mixed ANOVA and repeated measures ANOVA in SPSS at a significance level of 0.05.
Results: The results showed that training with music improved performance in the spatial pattern of the bimanual circle-line drawing task during the simple and moderate transfer and retention tests. However, in the difficult transfer test, training—especially with high-tempo music (120 BPM)—led to a decline in performance. Specifically, a decrease in the temporal pattern (i.e., number of circle-line cycles) was observed, indicating negative transfer.
Conclusion: Overall, after training, strong bimanual coupling did not occur, possibly due to the simplicity of the task. Temporal coupling was found to be stronger than spatial coupling. Moreover, higher music tempo was associated with greater bimanual coupling.

Abstract Reaching and grasping is one of the most basic fundamental skills. The aim of this study was to address the differences of movement variability and movement smoothness in reaching and grasping in children and adults. 60 children (age range: 8-13 years old) were divided into 6 groups. The task used in the study included reaching and grasping a cube with the dimension of 3.6 cm ³ which provided the palmar grasp for all children. Subjects had to grasp the cube with their dominant hands and brought it near their mouth. In addition, a group of adults participated in this study (age range: 24+1.2). Participants performed 10 trials and kinematic variables including mean squared jerk, dimensionless jerk, range of motion of elbow joint, and variability in coordination pattern were calculated. One-way ANOVA was used to analyze the data in each variable. The results showed that the 13-year-old group was significantly different than adult group in the mean squared jerk and dimensionless jerk. It was observed that 8- and 9-year-old groups had significant differences with other groups in range of motion of elbow joint and variability in coordination pattern; however, there was no differences among other groups. Overall, the results showed that the growth process of reaching and grasping is not limited to the early childhood. These results were interpreted according to the development of motor control and asynchronous acquisition of kinematic variables in the process of movement skill learning.

Abstract The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of 8 weeks of proprioceptive training on motor coordination in children with autism spectrum disorder in Shiraz schools. The method was quasi-experimental and a pretest/posttest design with a control group. 16 participants (5 to 12 years old, 8.62 ± 2.21) were randomly homogenized in experimental and control groups according to the results of Bruininks-Oseretsky subtests. Experimental subjects individually performed proprioceptive training in 24 sessions while the control group individually performed the similar number of sessions of regular occupational therapy. After the completion of the training course, posttest was conducted for both groups. Results demonstrated a significant difference between the two groups in all subscales of eye, hand and bimanual coordination (P≤0.05). Regarding the evaluations in this study and the significance of motor coordination due to changes in processing and sensory-motor systems, it can be concluded that proprioceptive training improved motor coordination in children with autism.

Abstract Coordination is an important part of successful movements in daily life and sports. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of different levels of cognitive activities on intrapersonal and interpersonal motor coordination in taekwondo athletes (Poomsae). The population consisted of Poomsae male athletes in Tehran city. 30 individual Poomsae athletes and 30 team Poomsae athletes (age range: 17 - 30 years old) were selected by convenience sampling method. The sample was divided into 3 groups: control, easy cognitive activities and difficult cognitive activities. The control group only performed the motor coordination task whereas the cognitive groups performed the dual task. The results of one-way ANOVA test showed a significant difference for two handed (P=0.003) and two legged (P=0.04) coordination in total time factor (speed). Also, there was a significant difference in the error percentage factor for interpersonal motor coordination (P=0.02). In a two by two group analysis, the easy (P=0.003) and difficult (P=0.001) cognitive activities groups in two handed motor coordination and the difficult cognitive activities group in two legged (P=0.02) and interpersonal (P=0.01) motor coordination performed better than the control group. It is suggested that difficult activities should be used in addition to regular physical activities.

Abstract Visual impairments as an individual constraint can lead to the lack of adequate visual perception and overshadow children’s all developmental aspects. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of a course of core stability training on fundamental skills in visually impaired boys. 30 visually impaired children (age range: 5-7 years) were selected by convenience sampling method. After the Ulrich pretest, they were randomly divided into two groups: the core stability training group and the ordinary daily activities. The experimental group participated in the core stability training for 16 sessions, each session 45 minutes. The control group carried out their daily activities. The results of mixed analysis of variance 2 × 2 and Bonferroni post hoc test indicated a significant difference in scores between the two groups so that the subjects of the experimental group outperformed the control group in all locomotors subscales (P<0.05). In general, the results of the study suggest core stability training as a suitable training model to promote fundamental motor skills in children with visual impairment because of increased levels of motivation and enjoyment of physical activity, the development of the children's physical self-concept and enhancement of abdominal and back muscles performance