Life Span Motor Development
Chapter 1: Fundamental Concepts
Development
It’s a continuous process of change in functional capacity. Functional capacity the
capability to exist- live, move and work- in the real world. cumulative process.
Development is related to (but not dependent on) age.
o Individuals do not necessarily advance in age and advance in development at the same
rate. Development does not stop at a particular age but rather continuous throughout
life.
Development involves sequential change. one step leads to the next step. Interaction
between individuals/ individuals and the environment.
Individuals functions in a variety of arenas, including physical, social, cognitive and
psychological for example: cognitive-/social development.
Motor development: refers to the continuous, age-related process of change in movement
as well as the interacting constraints (or factors) in the individual environment, and task that
drive these changes.
Motor learning: refers to the relatively permanent gains in motor skill capability associated
with practice or experience (Schmidt).
Motor behavior: when we prefer not to distinguish between motor learning and
motor development or when we want to include both.
Motor control: Is the study of the neural, physical, and behavior aspects of movement
(Schmidt).
Physical growth: is an increase in size of body mass resulting from an increase in complete, already
formed body parts.
Physiological maturation: Is a qualitative advance in biological makeup and may refer to cell, organ,
or system advancement in biochemical composition rather than to size alone.
>the state of optimal functional integration of an individual’s body systems and the ability to
reproduce. Development continuous long after physical maturity is reached. Physiological change
does not stop at the end of the physical growth period. Rather, it can occur throughout life.
Physiological change tends to be slower after the growth period but nevertheless remains
prominent.
Aging: is the process, occurring with the passage if time, that leads to loss of adaptability or full
function and eventually to death.
, Newell’s model of constraints
Karl Newell suggested that movements
arise from the interactions of the
organism, the environment in which the
movement occurs, and the task to be
undertaken. In any of these three
factors change, the resultant movement
changes.
The interaction of individual, task, and
environment changes the movement,
and, over time, patterns of interactions
lead to changes in motor development.
Newell calls the three factors we placed
on the points of our triangle:
constraints.
Constraint: a characteristic of the
individual, environment, or task that
encourages (zet aan tot) some movements while discouraging (ontmoedigend) others.
Individual constraints: are a person’s or organism’s unique physical and mental
characteristics.
For example: height, limb length, strength and motivation can influence the way an
individual moves. Individual constraints are either structural and functional.
o Structural constraints: are individual constraints related to the body’s structure:
height, weight, muscle mass. They change with growth and aging; however, they
tend to change slowly over time.
o Functional constraints: are individual constraints related to behavioral function.
Examples: motivation, fear, experiences, attentional focus. Such constraints can
change over a much shorter period of time.
Environmental constraints: are constraints related to the world around us. They are
global rather than task specific and can be physical or sociocultural. Physical
environmental constraints are characteristics of the environment: temperature, gravity,
amount of light, and the surfaces of floors and walls.
Task constraints: include the goals and rule structure of a particular movement or
activity. These constraints differ from individual motivation or goals in that they are
specific to the task.
Chapter 2: Principles of motion and Stability
Principles of motion and stability act on all movements and movers. As movers become more
proficient at skills, they often use these principles to their advantage.
Movements occur in a context that is governed by certain principles of motion and stability; that is,
certain physical laws of motion limit your movements. For example: gravity.
Jumping forward: the force of gravity will ensure that the flight path is parabolic Principles of
motion influence the interaction of constraints.
People throw using a movement pattern that is dictated by the shape and structure of the bones in
the shoulder. Muscles also have particular functional shapes and sizes, and they connect bones to
each other. In addition, the nervous system coordinates muscular contractions. Furthermore,
individuals use their bodies to move with a particular task goal in mind, which also acts to constrain
movements. Here lies the interconnectedness of constraints: The individual, with a task goal in mind,
Chapter 1: Fundamental Concepts
Development
It’s a continuous process of change in functional capacity. Functional capacity the
capability to exist- live, move and work- in the real world. cumulative process.
Development is related to (but not dependent on) age.
o Individuals do not necessarily advance in age and advance in development at the same
rate. Development does not stop at a particular age but rather continuous throughout
life.
Development involves sequential change. one step leads to the next step. Interaction
between individuals/ individuals and the environment.
Individuals functions in a variety of arenas, including physical, social, cognitive and
psychological for example: cognitive-/social development.
Motor development: refers to the continuous, age-related process of change in movement
as well as the interacting constraints (or factors) in the individual environment, and task that
drive these changes.
Motor learning: refers to the relatively permanent gains in motor skill capability associated
with practice or experience (Schmidt).
Motor behavior: when we prefer not to distinguish between motor learning and
motor development or when we want to include both.
Motor control: Is the study of the neural, physical, and behavior aspects of movement
(Schmidt).
Physical growth: is an increase in size of body mass resulting from an increase in complete, already
formed body parts.
Physiological maturation: Is a qualitative advance in biological makeup and may refer to cell, organ,
or system advancement in biochemical composition rather than to size alone.
>the state of optimal functional integration of an individual’s body systems and the ability to
reproduce. Development continuous long after physical maturity is reached. Physiological change
does not stop at the end of the physical growth period. Rather, it can occur throughout life.
Physiological change tends to be slower after the growth period but nevertheless remains
prominent.
Aging: is the process, occurring with the passage if time, that leads to loss of adaptability or full
function and eventually to death.
, Newell’s model of constraints
Karl Newell suggested that movements
arise from the interactions of the
organism, the environment in which the
movement occurs, and the task to be
undertaken. In any of these three
factors change, the resultant movement
changes.
The interaction of individual, task, and
environment changes the movement,
and, over time, patterns of interactions
lead to changes in motor development.
Newell calls the three factors we placed
on the points of our triangle:
constraints.
Constraint: a characteristic of the
individual, environment, or task that
encourages (zet aan tot) some movements while discouraging (ontmoedigend) others.
Individual constraints: are a person’s or organism’s unique physical and mental
characteristics.
For example: height, limb length, strength and motivation can influence the way an
individual moves. Individual constraints are either structural and functional.
o Structural constraints: are individual constraints related to the body’s structure:
height, weight, muscle mass. They change with growth and aging; however, they
tend to change slowly over time.
o Functional constraints: are individual constraints related to behavioral function.
Examples: motivation, fear, experiences, attentional focus. Such constraints can
change over a much shorter period of time.
Environmental constraints: are constraints related to the world around us. They are
global rather than task specific and can be physical or sociocultural. Physical
environmental constraints are characteristics of the environment: temperature, gravity,
amount of light, and the surfaces of floors and walls.
Task constraints: include the goals and rule structure of a particular movement or
activity. These constraints differ from individual motivation or goals in that they are
specific to the task.
Chapter 2: Principles of motion and Stability
Principles of motion and stability act on all movements and movers. As movers become more
proficient at skills, they often use these principles to their advantage.
Movements occur in a context that is governed by certain principles of motion and stability; that is,
certain physical laws of motion limit your movements. For example: gravity.
Jumping forward: the force of gravity will ensure that the flight path is parabolic Principles of
motion influence the interaction of constraints.
People throw using a movement pattern that is dictated by the shape and structure of the bones in
the shoulder. Muscles also have particular functional shapes and sizes, and they connect bones to
each other. In addition, the nervous system coordinates muscular contractions. Furthermore,
individuals use their bodies to move with a particular task goal in mind, which also acts to constrain
movements. Here lies the interconnectedness of constraints: The individual, with a task goal in mind,
