Asymmetry of max grip force and max rate of grip force development among adolescents with and without intellectual disability.

The human body seems symmetrical but functional asymmetry can be observed for many tasks. One of the tasks observed the functional asymmetry is grip force and rate of grip force development (RGFD). To efficiently accomplish many tasks, it is important to measure those parameters in different ages and special groups. Thus, the purpose of the study was to test asymmetry of max grip force and max RGFD among adolescents with and without intellectual disability. 41 adolescents with (IQ between 50 and 70) and 41 adolescents without intellectual disability voluntarily participated to the study. Max grip force and max RGFD was measured using a force transducer with custom-made software. The statistical analysis displayed that adolescents without intellectual disability had higher max grip force and max RGFD with their both hands compared to adolescent with intellectual disability. Interestingly, whereas adolescent without intellectual disability displayed an asymmetry between the hands both for max grip force and max RGFD, adolescents with intellectual disability had asymmetry only for max grip force but not for max RGFD. Thus, adolescents with intellectual disability may have symmetrical neurological pathways. Individuals with intellectual disability should be provided with more physical activity and/or exercise opportunities including the bimanual movements with fast and ballistic actions.

The relationship between attitude toward physical activity and weight gain in children and young adolescence.

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between attitudes toward physical activity and weight gain among children and young adolescents with an additional focus on the impact of gender on these attitudes. Methods: Employing a descriptive survey method, data were systematically gathered via purposive sampling from 11 specific cities in Türkiye, ensuring representation from all seven regions. A total of 3,138 students, aged between 9 and 14 years, participated in this study, with a distribution of 46% girls and 54% boys. To assess the attitudes of children and young adolescents toward physical activity, the Youth Physical Activity Attitude Scale was utilized. Height and body weight measurements were taken to determine the body mass index of participants. SPSS 26.0 software facilitated the statistical analyses, including Pearson correlation analysis to explore relationships between variables. Multivariate Analysis of Variance was employed to evaluate the impact of age, BMI, and gender on attitudes toward physical activity. Results: Participants classified as normal weight exhibited a more positive attitude towards physical activity compared to their obese and overweight counterparts. Moreover, a significant gender difference emerged, with boys demonstrating significantly higher positive attitudes toward physical activity than girls. However, no significant difference was observed in negative attitudes based on gender. The study also revealed that an escalation in negative attitudes towards physical activity correlated with students being categorized as underweight, overweight, or obese, as opposed to having a normal weight status. Additionally, a statistically significant divergence in both positive and negative attitudes towards physical activity was found based on age. Specifically, the results indicated that students aged 9 and 14 exhibited lower levels of positive attitude when contrasted with their counterparts of different age groups. Conversely, in the domain of negative attitudes, students at the age of 9 scored higher than their peers in other age categories. Discussion: Attitudes towards physical activity can serve as a convenient indicator and guide for assessing the effectiveness of various practices or interventions aimed at promoting physical activity, with recognition of the significant gender difference in positive attitudes among children and young adolescents.

Effects of Short-Term Novice Archery Training on Reaching Movement Performance and Interlimb Asymmetries.

Previous studies showed numerous evidence for the interlimb asymmetries in motor performance during arm reaching movements. Furthermore, these interlimb asymmetries have been shown to associate with spatial patterns of hand selection behavior. Importantly, these interlimb asymmetries can be modified systematically by occlusion of visual feedback, or a long-term sports training. In this study, we asked about the effects of a short-term training on interlimb asymmetries. Eighteen healthy young participants underwent a 12-week novice traditional archery training (TAT). Their unimanual dominant and nondominant arm reaching movement performance was assessed before and after TAT. We found that movement accuracy, movement precision, and movement efficiency in the experimental group have all improved significantly as a result of TAT. These improvements were comparable across both arms, thus the interlimb differences in movement performance were not affected by the short-term TAT and remained similar. These results suggest that while short-term training may contribute positively to reaching performance, it is unlikely to have a significant impact on the differences observed between the dominant and nondominant arms. This unique characteristics of dominant and nondominant arm should be taken into consideration when developing targeted sports and rehabilitation programs for athletes or individuals with acute or chronic motor deficits.

Reaction time asymmetries provide insight into mechanisms underlying dominant and non-dominant hand selection.

Handedness is often thought of as a hand "preference" for specific tasks or components of bimanual tasks. Nevertheless, hand selection decisions depend on many factors beyond hand dominance. While these decisions are likely influenced by which hand might show performance advantages for the particular task and conditions, there also appears to be a bias toward the dominant hand, regardless of performance advantage. This study examined the impact of hand selection decisions and workspace location on reaction time and movement quality. Twenty-six neurologically intact participants performed targeted reaching across the horizontal workspace in a 2D virtual reality environment, and we compared reaction time across two groups: those selecting which hand to use on a trial-by-trial basis (termed the choice group) and those performing the task with a preassigned hand (the no-choice group). Along with reaction time, we also compared reach performance for each group across two ipsilateral workspaces: medial and lateral. We observed a significant difference in reaction time between the hands in the choice group, regardless of workspace. In contrast, both hands showed shorter but similar reaction times and differences between the lateral and medial workspaces in the no-choice group. We conclude that the shorter reaction times of the dominant hand under choice conditions may be due to dominant hand bias in the selection process that is not dependent upon interlimb performance differences.

Participation of Soccer Training Improves Lower Limb Coordination and Decreases Motor Lateralization.

Athletes, who display less lateralization, are considered to be more successful in their sports. Therefore, it is important to test the lateralization profiles of the athletes to determine future prospects. Soccer is one of the sports where lateralization plays an important role because performing the passes and kicks with either foot may increase the success rate. Improved lower limb coordination is also very essential to perform the soccer skills more efficiently. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate the motor lateralization profiles of youth soccer players and to compare the same lateralization to non-athletes. A total of 28 healthy youth (14 soccer players) aged between 14 and 16 years voluntarily participated in this study. All participants were right-footed and were asked to hit the targets with their either foot maintaining accuracy in a custom-made virtual reality interface. Final position error (FPE) and foot path deviation from linearity (FPDL) were calculated to test motor lateralization for each foot and group. Two-way Mixed Model ANOVA was conducted for each dependent variable. Results indicated significant differences for FPDL between groups, while there were no significant differences between groups and within feet for FPE. Nonathletes had significantly higher FPDL with their nondominant foot compared to their dominant foot, which was not observed among soccer players. Overall, nonathletes' movements were more curvature path compared to soccer players, thus, can be considered as less coordinated. As soccer players did not show a difference between their feet on FPDL and performed better than nonathletes, soccer participation can improve lower limb coordination as well as alter motor performance and lateralization.

The Association Between the China's Economic Development and the Passing Rate of National Physical Fitness Standards for Elderly People Aged 60-69 From 2000 to 2020.

Objective: According to the seventh demographic census, China's elderly population reached 260 million, accounting for 18.7% of the total population, indicating that China is on the verge of transitioning from a relatively mild aging to a moderately aging society, and an aging society inevitably brings concerns about the elderly people's health. The purpose of this study was to better understand the effect of economic development on the physical fitness of the elderly people aged 60-69 in China during the first two decades of the twenty-first century, as well as to establish a correlation between China's gross domestic product (GDP) and changes in the elderly people's passing rate of national physical fitness standards. Methods: A linear regression analysis was performed on the data of GDP and the passing rate of national physical fitness standards of Chinese elderly people aged 60-69 in 2000, 2005, 2010, 2014, and 2020. Results: The passing rate of national physical fitness standards for elderly people aged 60-69 increased linearly (R2 = 80.56%, p < 0.05), indicating that the physical fitness of the elderly tends to increase steadily with GDP expansion. Conclusions: Between 2000 and 2020, the annual improvement in the physical fitness of the elderly people in China is inextricably linked to rapid economic development. Increased financial investments in public sports services and a corresponding national fitness plan all contribute to an overall improvement in the physical fitness of the elderly people. This outcome is the effect of fiscal and policy coordination, which may represent a distinctive Chinese model and contribution to the global effort to manage and improve population physical fitness.

Increased Perceptual and Motor Performance of the Arms of Elite Water Polo Players.

BACKGROUND: It has been stated that long-term participation in sport training can influence the motor asymmetry of the arms with a decreased interlimb difference. However, whether this pattern is observable in different sports and with different variables, like perceptual performance, still needs to be tested. Therefore, we investigated if long-term sports participation might modify the motor and perceptual performance asymmetries of arms in water polo players. It was hypothesized that water polo players would perform with less interlimb asymmetry in comparison to nonathletes. METHODS: Right-handed water polo players and nonathletes were tested on motor performance for both arms during a reaching task. Thirteen water polo players and thirteen nonathletes performed reaching movements under two experimental conditions: (a) right arm and (b) left arm. Velocity, accuracy, hand path deviation from linearity, and reaction time were calculated for each trial and for both arms. The potential interlimb differences in movement performance could be assessed by testing. RESULTS: Consistent with the hypothesis, our findings showed that water polo players displayed substantially less asymmetry in the performance of accuracy and reaction time. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that performance asymmetries of arms can be altered via intense long-term practice.

Motor Lateralization May Be Influenced by Long-Term Piano Playing Practice.

Motor lateralization is viewed as anatomical or functional asymmetry of the two sides of the body. Functional motor asymmetry can be influenced by musical practice. This study explored whether piano playing experience modulates motor asymmetry and leads to an altered pattern of hand selection, reflecting an altered handedness. We asked two groups of right-handed participants-piano players and non-piano players-to reach targets in their frontal space with both arms, and we tested the motor performance of each arm on this task and then on an arm preference test. As musical practice can decrease motor asymmetry between arms, we hypothesized that participants with piano playing experience would display less interlimb asymmetry and that this, in turn, would change their arm preference pattern, compared with participants without piano playing experience. We found support for both hypotheses, and we conclude that arm selection (preference) is not biologically fixed, but, rather, can be modulated through long-term piano playing.

Performance of Older Persons in a Simulated Shopping Task Is Influenced by Priming with Age Stereotypes.

Previous research suggests that older persons show cognitive deficits in standardized laboratory tests, but not in more natural tests such as the Multiple Errands Task (MET). The absence of deficits in the latter tests has been attributed to the compensation of deficits by strategies based on life-long experience. To scrutinize this view, we primed older participants with positive or negative stereotypes about old age before administering MET. We found that compared to unprimed controls, priming with positive age stereotypes reduced the number of errors without changing response times, while priming with negative stereotypes changed neither errors not response times. We interpret our findings as evidence that positive age priming improved participants' cognitive functions while leaving intact their experience-based compensation, and that negative age priming degraded participants' cognitive functions which, however, was balanced by an even stronger experience-based compensation.

Decreased interlimb differences in female basketball players.

BACKGROUND: Hand preference can be influenced by some factors like sensory information and sports participation. In many sports, it is always desirable to have the similar performance of both hands to adapt to the fast changes of the game. Elite basketball players use their left non-dominant hand more accurately and more frequently during the game compared to amateurs. However, there is no quantitative data to explain this phenomenon. The aim of the study was to test whether participation of long-term basketball training influences interlimb difference and also observed more accurate and more frequent usage of the non-dominant hand in basketball players that can be explained by some kinematic variables during an aiming task. METHODS: Professional right-handed female basketball players and age-matched non-athletes were asked to reach one of three targets in a virtual reality environment setup with either their non-dominant or dominant hand. Two kinematic parameters depicting motor performance asymmetries were measured: accuracy and hand path deviation from linearity (HPDL). RESULTS: No interlimb differences for basketball players but significant asymmetrical performance for non-athletes were observed. Although the aiming task used in this study is not a basketball specific task, basketball players still displayed better performance compared to non-athletes in both accuracy and HPDL. CONCLUSIONS: The current study implies that not only sensorimotor information but also participation of long-term sports activity can modify interlimb difference. Moreover, basketball players having symmetrical motor performance of both hands, which was found in this study, can indirectly explain the more frequent usage of the non-dominant left hand in basketball players.

Motor asymmetry in elite fencers.

The authors previously reported that asymmetrical patterns of hand preference are updated and modified by present sensorimotor conditions. They examined whether participation in long-term training in the upper extremity sport fencing might modify arm selection and performance asymmetries. Eight fencers and eight nonfencers performed reaching movements under 3 experimental conditions: (a) nonchoice right, (b) nonchoice left, and (c) choice, either right or left arm as selected by subject. The nonchoice conditions allowed assessment of potential interlimb differences in movement performance, while the choice condition allowed assessment of the frequency and pattern of arm selection across subject groups. Our findings showed that the athlete group showed substantially greater symmetry in the performance and selection measures. These findings suggest that arm selection and performance asymmetries can be altered by intense long-term practice.

Comparative study of anthropometric measurement and body composition between elite soccer and basketball players / Estudio comparativo de las medidas antropométricas y composición corporal entre futbolistas de elite y jugadores de básquetbol

The purpose of this study was to describe anthropometric characteristics and body composition of elite soccer and basketball players as well as to make comparisons between them. Seventy-one males were enrolled in the study, divided into three groups: twenty-six soccer players, fourteen basketball players and thirty-one healthy sedentary subjects. All subjects were assessed for the anthropometric measures required for the calculation of body composition variables, using the standardized procedures recommended by established literature. Data was analyzed using SPSS and the descriptive statistics were expressed as a mean (SD) for each variable, while the ANOVA and LSD Post Hoc tests were carried out to detect the effects of each type of sport. The results showed there was no significant difference in body mass index among the groups, while a significant difference was found for body height and body weight as well as for all three of the body contents measured (muscle, bone and fat) among the groups. Basketball players were significantly taller and heavier than soccer players and the subjects of the control group, while there was also a significant difference between the weight of soccer players and the subjects of the control group, who were significantly heavier. The muscle and bone contents in the bodies of the subjects in the control group were significantly lower than that of all other subjects while there was no difference between soccer and basketball players. Lastly, the fat content in the body of the subjects in the control group was significantly higher than that of all of the other subjects, while there was no difference between soccer and basketball players...

El propósito de este estudio fue describir las características antropométricas y de composición corporal de los jugadores de fútbol y básquetbol de élite, así como hacer comparaciones entre ellos. Setenta y un hombres fueron incluidos en el estudio, divididos en tres grupos: 26 jugadores de fútbol, 14 jugadores de básquetbol y 31 sujetos sedentarios sanos. Todos los sujetos fueron evaluados para obtener las medidas antropométricas requeridas para el cálculo de las variables de composición corporal, utilizando los procedimientos normalizados recomendados. Los datos fueron analizados mediante el programa SPSS y los datos estadísticos descriptivos se expresaron como media (desviación estándar) para cada variable. Además se utilizaron las pruebas de ANOVA y LSD que se llevaron a cabo para detectar los efectos de cada tipo de deporte. Los resultados mostraron que no existía diferencia significativa en el índice de masa corporal entre los grupos, mientras que se encontró una diferencia estadísticamente significativa para la altura del cuerpo y el peso corporal, así como para las tres variables medidas del cuerpo (músculo, hueso y grasa) entre los grupos. Los jugadores de básquetbol fueron significativamente más altos y pesados que los jugadores de fútbol y los sujetos del grupo de control, mientras que también hubo una diferencia significativa entre el peso de los jugadores de fútbol y los sujetos del grupo de control, que fueron significativamente más pesados. El contenido muscular y óseo de los sujetos en el grupo control fue significativamente menor, mientras que no hubo diferencias entre los jugadores de fútbol y baloncesto. Por último, el contenido de grasa en el cuerpo de los sujetos en el grupo de control fue significativamente mayor que la de los otros sujetos, mientras que no hubo diferencia entre los jugadores de fútbol y de básquetbol...

Body height and its estimation utilizing arm span measurements in Serbian adults / Altura corporal y su estimación utilizando mediciones de envergadura en adultos serbios

Anthropologists recognized the tallness of nations in the Dinaric Alps long time ago. As the modern Serbians fall more into the Dinaric racial classification than any other does, the purpose of this study was to examine the body height in Serbian adults as well as the relationship between arm span as an alternative to estimating the body height, which vary in different ethnic and racial groups. The nature and scope of this study analyzes 394 students (318 men, aged 20.13±1.47 and 76 women, aged 19.59±1.46) from the University of Novi Sad to be subjects. The anthropometric measurements were taken according to the protocol of the ISAK. Means and standard deviations were obtained. A comparison of means of body heights and arm spans within each gender group and between genders were carried out using a t-test. The relationships between body height and arm span were determined using simple correlation coefficients and their 95% confidence interval. Then a linear regression analysis was performed to examine the extent to which the arm span can reliably predict body height. The results have shown that male Serbians are 181.96±6.74 cm tall and have an arm span of 184.78±8.41 cm, while female Serbians are 166.82±5.88 cm tall and have an arm span of 164.67±8.09 cm. Compared to other studies, the results of this study have shown that both genders make Serbian population one of the tallest nations on the earth. Moreover, the arm span reliably predicts body height in both genders. However, the estimation equations, which were obtained in Serbians, are substantially different alike in other populations, since arm span was close to body heights: in men 2.82±4.89 cm more than the body height and in women 2.15±4.68 cm less than the body height. This confirms the necessity for developing separate height models for each population.

Los antropólogos estimaron la altura de las naciones en los Alpes Dináricos hace mucho tiempo. Como los Serbios modernos caen en la clasificación racial de Dináricos, el propósito de este estudio fue examinar la altura corporal en adultos serbios, así como la relación con la longitud de la envergadura de brazo a brazo como una alternativa a la estimación de la altura corporal, que varía en los diferentes grupos étnicos y raciales. Se analizó a 394 estudiantes (318 hombres y 76 mujeres, con edades entre 20,13±1,47 años y 19,59±1,46 años, respectivamente) de la Universidad de Novi Sad. Las medidas antropométricas fueron tomadas de acuerdo con el protocolo de ISAK, obteniendo Medias y DE. La comparación de la media de altura corporal y envergadura dentro de cada grupo y entre sexos se realizó con la prueba t. Las relaciones entre estatura y envergaduras se determinaron mediante coeficientes de correlación simple, con un intervalo de confianza del 95%. También se realizó un análisis de regresión lineal para examinar el grado en que la envergadura puede prever con exactitud la altura corporal. Los resultados mostraron que los hombres Serbios tienen una altura de 181,96±6,74 cm, y una envergadura de 184,78±8,41 cm, mientras que las mujeres una altura de 166,82±5,88 cm y una envergadura de 164,67±8,09 cm. En comparación con otros estudios, estos resultados demuestran que para ambos sexos, la población Serbia es una de las más altas. Por otra parte, la envergadura predice confiablemente la altura corporal en ambos sexos. Sin embargo, las ecuaciones de estimación obtenidas en esta población son sustancialmente diferentes a otras poblaciones, ya que la envergadura fue cercana a la altura corporal: en hombres 2,82±4,89 cm mayor a la altura corporal y en mujeres 2,15±4,68 cm menor a ésta. Esto confirma la necesidad de desarrollar diferentes modelos de para determinar la altura en cada población.

Coincidence-anticipation timing requirements are different in racket sports.

The aim of this study was to compare the coincidence-anticipation timing accuracy of athletes of different racket sports with various stimulus velocity requirements. Ninety players (15 girls, 15 boys for each sport) from tennis (M age = 12.4 yr., SD = 1.4), badminton (M age = 12.5 yr., SD = 1.4), and table tennis (M age = 12.4 yr., SD = 1.2) participated in this study. Three different stimulus velocities, low, moderate, and high, were used to simulate the velocity requirements of these racket sports. Tennis players had higher accuracy when they performed under the low stimulus velocity compared to badminton and table tennis players. Badminton players performed better under the moderate speed comparing to tennis and table tennis players. Table tennis players had better performance than tennis and badminton players under the high stimulus velocity. Therefore, visual and motor systems of players from different racket sports may adapt to a stimulus velocity in coincidence-anticipation timing, which is specific to each type of racket sports.

Transfer of learning on a spatial memory task between the blind and sighted people.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of two different types of feedback on a spatial memory task between the blind and blindfolded-sighted participants. Participants tried to estimate the predetermined distance by using their dominant hands. Both blind and blindfolded-sighted groups were randomly divided into two feedback subgroups as "100% frequency" and "10% bandwidth". The score of the participants was given verbally to the participants as knowledge of results (KR). The target distance was set as 60 cm. Sixty acquisition trials were performed in 4 sets each including 15 repetition afterwards immediate and delayed retention tests were undertaken. Moreover, 24 hours past the delayed retention test, the participants completed 15 no-KR trials as a transfer test (target distance was 30 cm). The results of the statistical analyses revealed no significant differences for both acquisition and retention tests. However, a significant difference was found at transfer test. 100% frequency blind group performed significantly less accurate than all other groups. As a result, it can be concluded that different types of feedback have similar effect on spatial memory task used in this study. However, types of feedback can change the performance of accuracy on transferring this skill among the blind.