Motor Competence, Physical Activity and Health 2022

A special issue of Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology (ISSN 2411-5142). This special issue belongs to the section "Sports Medicine and Nutrition".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2022) | Viewed by 5379

Special Issue Editors

1. Affiliation Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Campus de Santa Apolónia, 5300-223 Bragança, Portugal
2. Research Center in Sports Sciences, Health Sciences and Human Development (CIDESD), Vila Real, Portugal
Interests: motor competence; motor development; motor skills; physical fitness; physical activity; dynamic relationship between motor competence; physical fitness and health; children and youth; growth and maturation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Escola Superior de Desporto e Lazer de Melgaço, Instituto Politécnico de Viana do Castelo, Melgaço, Portugal
Interests: motor development; motor competence; physical fitness; somatic fitness; child development
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This issue will focus on the dynamic relationship between motor competence (MC) (actual and perceived), physical activity, physical fitness, and health, with a special, but not exclusive, focus on healthy weight. We are interested in exploring all the relationships between motor competence and several factors that may be associated with it, including physical health, mental health, academic success, cognitive function and sports success (retention and dropout in sport). MC is defined as the proficiency to execute a broad range of motor skills and associated factors related to motor coordination and control. MC has been identified as an important factor related to physical activity level and healthy weight development. Low levels of MC may contribute to reduced movement opportunities, physical fitness and perceived MC. MC may also explain other outcomes, for example, academic achievement, cognitive function, and other health outcomes. It may also explain the success in youth sport participation. We will give special attention to longitudinal and intervention studies; however, cross-sectional studies are also welcome.

Prof. Dr. Vítor Lopes
Prof. Dr. Luis Paulo Rodrigues
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • motor competence
  • physical activity
  • health
  • obesity
  • sport participation
  • motor skills
  • well-being
  • longitudinal studies

Published Papers (3 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

9 pages, 1146 KiB  
Article
How Does the Amount of a Physical Education Intervention Affect Gross Motor Coordination in Early Childhood?
by Giovanni Angelo Navarra, Antonino Scardina, Ewan Thomas, Giuseppe Battaglia, Massimiliano Agnese, Patrizia Proia, Antonio Palma and Marianna Bellafiore
J. Funct. Morphol. Kinesiol. 2022, 7(4), 96; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/jfmk7040096 - 28 Oct 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1853
Abstract
Little is known about the dose–response of physical education interventions on motor coordination in preschoolers. Our aim was to investigate whether the development of motor skills changed depending on different amounts of a physical education program (PEP) in children aged 3–5 years. One [...] Read more.
Little is known about the dose–response of physical education interventions on motor coordination in preschoolers. Our aim was to investigate whether the development of motor skills changed depending on different amounts of a physical education program (PEP) in children aged 3–5 years. One hundred forty-five children were recruited from kindergartens and randomly divided into a control group (CG, n = 28), which did not perform any PEP, and two intervention groups, which performed 4 h/week (I1, n = 78) and 10 h/week (I2, n = 39) of a PEP for 16 weeks. Each lesson was set in the form of a programmed game in order to produce fun, thus increasing enthusiasm for participation. Before and after the intervention, locomotor and object control skills and the gross motor development quotient were assessed with the Italian version of the gross motor development test. Both intervention groups showed a significant increase in the motor skills compared with the control group. Moreover, the level of performance was significantly higher after 10 h/week compared to 4 h/week. These findings can be useful for standardizing PEPs in preschool settings so that they can be applied by teachers for planning effective programs for developing motor skills in early childhood. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Motor Competence, Physical Activity and Health 2022)
Show Figures

Figure 1

10 pages, 274 KiB  
Article
The Developmental Trajectory of Motor Competence of Children That Lived the COVID-19 Confinement Period: A Four-Year Follow-Up Study in Portuguese Children
by Aida Carballo-Fazanes, Luis Paulo Rodrigues, Rui Silva, Vitor P. Lopes and Cristian Abelairas-Gómez
J. Funct. Morphol. Kinesiol. 2022, 7(3), 64; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/jfmk7030064 - 31 Aug 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1705
Abstract
Children’s motor competence (MC) was negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic; however, possible chronic effects have not been studied. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the possible impact of the forced lack of physical activity (PA) during the COVID-19 lockdown [...] Read more.
Children’s motor competence (MC) was negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic; however, possible chronic effects have not been studied. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the possible impact of the forced lack of physical activity (PA) during the COVID-19 lockdown on children’s MC two years later. The motor competence of sixty-seven healthy children (7.4–12.2 years old) was assessed using the Motor Competence Assessment (MCA). All participants completed the MCA tests at two different moments (before and after the COVID-19 lockdown), four years apart. The mean values after the COVID-19 lockdown for all participants on the subscales and on the Total MCA are lower, but no significant changes were found when controlling for gender and age (p > 0.05 in all analyses). However, a significant decrease was found in the Locomotor subscale in boys (p = 0.003). After dividing the participants into three age groups, the youngest also suffered a decrease in the Locomotor subscale (p < 0.001) and their Total MCA (p = 0.04). In addition, those participants who had a higher MC at baseline decreased their scores for the Locomotor (p < 0.001) and Manipulative (p < 0.001) subscales, and for the Total MCA (p < 0.001). In conclusion, the younger children and the more motor proficient did not fully recover from the negative effects of the pandemic lockdown after two years. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Motor Competence, Physical Activity and Health 2022)

Review

Jump to: Research

12 pages, 273 KiB  
Review
FTO and Anthropometrics: The Role of Modifiable Factors
by Cassandra Evans, Jason Curtis and Jose Antonio
J. Funct. Morphol. Kinesiol. 2022, 7(4), 90; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/jfmk7040090 - 18 Oct 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1398
Abstract
Numerous gene variants are linked to an individual’s propensity to become overweight or obese. The most commonly studied gene variant is the FTO single nucleotide polymorphism. The FTO risk allele is linked with increased body mass, BMI and other lifestyle factors that may [...] Read more.
Numerous gene variants are linked to an individual’s propensity to become overweight or obese. The most commonly studied gene variant is the FTO single nucleotide polymorphism. The FTO risk allele is linked with increased body mass, BMI and other lifestyle factors that may perpetuate an individual’s risk for obesity. Studies assessing eating behaviors, eating preferences, nutrition interventions and other lifestyle factors were reviewed. These studies demonstrated a clear difference in eating behaviors and preferences. Lifestyle modifications including physical activity and diet were effective in weight management even in those with the risk allele. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Motor Competence, Physical Activity and Health 2022)
Back to TopTop