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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Psychol.
Sec. Developmental Psychology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1544168
The Relationship between Motor Competence and Executive function as Influenced by Age, Sex, and Family Socio-Economic Status Motor Competence and Executive function
Provisionally accepted- 1 NECAT HEPKON SPORTS SCIENCES FACULTY DOKUZ EYLUL UNIVERSITY - IZMİR - TURKEY, IZMİR, Türkiye
- 2 Damghan University, Dāmghān, Semnan, Iran
- 3 Dokuz Eylül University, Alsancak, İzmir, Türkiye
Motor Competence (MC) plays a fundamental role in physical, cognitive, and social development, while executive function (EF) is a key factor influencing MC. The primary objective of this study was to compare MC across three age groups (children, adolescents, and young adults), sex, and socio-economic status (SES). The main aim was to investigate the relationship between MC and EF and to determine whether age, sex, and SES could modify this relationship. This descriptivecorrelational study evaluated 475 participants from three age groups (8-11, 12-15, and 18-21 years). MC was measured using the BOT-2 test, and EF was assessed with the Stroop test. Data were analyzed using independent t-tests, one-way ANOVA, and linear regression analysis. Findings revealed that MC was higher in children compared to adolescents and young adults, and higher SES was associated with better MC, whereas sex had no significant effect on MC.Additionally, a strong positive relationship (44%) was identified between EF and MC, with this relationship being moderated by age, sex, and SES. The results indicated that MC and EF are influenced by the interaction of individual (age and sex) and environmental (SES) constraints.These findings underscore the importance of incorporating these factors into educational and sports planning for more holistic development.
Keywords: motor competence, Executive Function, socio-economic status, age, Sex
Received: 13 Dec 2024; Accepted: 17 Feb 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Ghorbanzadeh, Mohammadi Orangi and Sahin. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Behrouz Ghorbanzadeh, NECAT HEPKON SPORTS SCIENCES FACULTY DOKUZ EYLUL UNIVERSITY - IZMİR - TURKEY, IZMİR, Türkiye
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