Author(s): PILLING, H., SCHAERZ, S., Institution: LETHBRIDGE POLYTECHNIC, Country: CANADA, Abstract-ID: 634

Background: Movement competence (MC) and executive function (EF) are thought to co-develop in childhood, in part because both draw on overlapping neurodevelopmental systems that support skill learning and goal-directed action [1]. However, much of the existing evidence has paired laboratory-based EF tasks with MC assessments that emphasize isolated skill execution, limiting ecological relevance [2]. This preliminary study examined the MC–EF association using an integrated multi-skill movement task alongside both objective and behaviour-based indicators of EF.
Methods: Thirteen children aged 7–12 years (8 boys, 5 girls) completed a one-visit laboratory protocol. Movement competence was assessed using the Canadian Agility and Movement Skill Assessment (CAMSA), a time-constrained obstacle course evaluating integrated multi-skill movement. Executive function was assessed using computerized tasks targeting inhibitory control (Flanker), working memory (Corsi Backwards), and cognitive flexibility (Trail Making Test Part B). Parents completed the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function, Second Edition (BRIEF-2) as a behaviour-based indicator of everyday EF. Children completed the computerized EF tasks first, followed by the CAMSA. Pearson product–moment correlations examined associations between MC and EF measures.
Results: Because higher CAMSA scores indicate better MC, whereas lower reaction time (RT) and BRIEF-2 scores indicate better EF, negative associations were expected between CAMSA and RT-based and behaviour-based EF outcomes. In contrast, higher Corsi Backwards span reflects better working memory performance; therefore, positive associations were expected between CAMSA and Corsi span. Consistent with these expectations, CAMSA Composite was negatively related to Flanker Incongruent RT (r = −0.61, p < .05), an association driven primarily by the Speed component (r = −0.72, p < .001). Small-to-moderate associations were also observed between CAMSA outcomes and BRIEF-2 ratings (e.g., rs = −0.10 to −0.55), though these relationships were not statistically significant in this small preliminary sample.
Conclusion: In this small preliminary sample, movement competence assessed using an integrated multi-skill movement task (rather than isolated skill execution) showed a strong relationship with objective inhibitory control performance. The next step is to expand the project with a larger sample so that age and sex can be included in analytic models and their influence on the movement competence–executive function association can be tested.
References
[1] Ludyga & Herrmann, Psychol Sport Exerc, 2025
[2] Schaerz, Kinesiol Rev, 2025