Search results for " play"
showing 10 items of 274 documents
Early communicative gestures and play as predictors of language development in children born with and without family risk for dyslexia
2014
The present study investigated early communicative gestures, play, and language skills in children born with family risk for dyslexia (FR) and a control group of children without this inheritable risk at ages 12, 15, 18, and 24 months. Participants were drawn from the Tromsø Longitudinal study of Dyslexia (TLD) which follows children's cognitive and language development from age 12 months through Grade 2 in order to identify early markers of developmental dyslexia. Results showed that symbolic play and parent reported play at age 12 months and communicative gestures at age 15 months explained 61% of the variance in productive language at 24 months in the FR group. These early nonlinguistic …
Transformational Leadership, Task-Involving Climate, and Their Implications in Male Junior Soccer Players: A Multilevel Approach
2019
Despite the well-known positive consequences of transformational coaches in sport, there is still little research exploring the mechanisms through which coaches&rsquo
Inferring functional patterns of tool use behavior from the temporal structure of object play sequences in a non-human primate species.
2019
Abstract Inferring functional components of behavioral sequences is a crucial but challenging task. A systematic comparison of their temporal structure is a good starting point, based on the postulate that more functional traits are less structurally variable. We studied stone handling behavior (SH) in Balinese long-tailed macaques, a versatile form of stone-directed play. We tested the hypothesis that stones are used by male monkeys to stimulate their genitals in a sexual context (i.e., “sex toy” hypothesis). Specifically, two SH actions (i.e., “tap-on-groin” (TOG) and “rub-on-groin” (ROG), respectively the repetitive tapping and rubbing of a stone onto the genital area) gained functional …
Play assessment for group settings: A pilot study to construct an assessment tool
2006
The Play Assessment for Group Setting (PAGS) was constructed to measure children's play performance. The study was undertaken with 93 children aged from 2 to 8 years to examine whether the items of the PAGS construct a unidimensional scale that can be used to measure children's play ability. The internal scale validity and the person response validity of the PAGS were investigated by examining the goodness-of-fit of the play items and children's play performance to the many-faceted Rasch model for the PAGS. In total, 46 of the 51 play items demonstrated acceptable goodness-of-fit. Of the 93 children, 90.3% demonstrated acceptable goodness-of-fit on the scale of play items. Overall, the resu…
The effects of the Nordic hamstring exercise on sprint performance and eccentric knee flexor strength: A systematic review and meta-analysis of inter…
2021
Objectives: The primary aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the Nordic hamstring exercise (NHE) on sprint performance (i.e., 5, 10 and 20 m) and explore associations between study characteristics and sprint outcomes in team sport players. Secondary aims were to (1) investigate the effects of the NHE on eccentric strength of the knee flexors (ESKF) with categorical subgroup analysis to determine differences between recreationally, well-trained individuals and young athletes, (2) determine the relation between ESKF and sprint performance in team sport players, and (3) explore the effect of study characteristics (i.e., weekly volume, time duration and body mass) on ESKF.Methods…
Experimental evidence for suspence as determinant of video game enjoyment
2009
Based on theoretical assumptions from film psychology and their application to video games, the hypothesis is tested that suspense is a major factor in video game enjoyment. A first-person shooter game was experimentally manipulated to create either a low level or a high level of suspense. Sixty-three participants were randomly assigned to experimental conditions; enjoyment was assessed after playing by a 10-item rating scale. Results support the assumption that suspense is a driver of video game enjoyment. © 2009 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.
Recess physical activity and school-related social factors in Finnish primary and lower secondary schools: cross-sectional associations.
2014
Abstract Background Participation in physical activities provides students with opportunities for social interaction and social skills development. The purpose of this study was to investigate the associations of students’ recess physical activity with school-related social factors. Methods Data were collected in 19 schools countrywide in autumn 2010, and 1463 students from grades 4 and 5 (primary school) and from grades 7 and 8 (lower secondary school) completed an anonymous questionnaire. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to investigate whether self-reported physical activity at recess was associated with peer relationships at school, relatedness to school and school clim…
Development and validation of the Perceived Game-Specific Soccer Competence Scale
2015
The objective of this study was to create a valid, self-reported, game-specific soccer competence scale. A structural model of perceived competence, performance measures and motivation was tested as the basis for the scale. A total of 1321 soccer players (261 females, 1060 males) ranging from 12 to 15 years (13.4 ± 1.0 years) participated in the study. They completed the Perceived Game-Specific Soccer Competence Scale (PGSSCS), self-assessments of tactical skills and motivation, as well as technical and speed and agility tests. Results of factor analyses, tests of internal consistency and correlations between PGSSCS subscales, performance measures and motivation supported the reliability an…
Development of symbolic play through the use of virtual reality tools in children with autistic spectrum disorders: two case studies.
2008
Difficulties in understanding symbolism have been documented as characteristic of autistic spectrum disorders (ASDs). In general, virtual reality (VR) environments offer a set of potential advantages for educational intervention in ASD. In particular, VR offers the advantage, for teaching pretend play and for understanding imagination, of it being possible to show these imaginary transformations explicitly. This article reports two case studies of children with autism (aged 8:6 and 15:7, both male), examining the effectiveness of using a VR tool specifically designed to work on teaching understanding of pretend play. The results, confirmed by independent observers, showed a significant adv…
Effects of modelling on children's pretend play.
1989
The effects of modelling on pretend play were studied in children between 2.6 and 3.6 years of age by examining changes both in the action and language-based expressions of pretending. Three modelled scenes were demonstrated with the same realistic toys used by the child in the pre-modelling phase. The results gave support to the idea of the effectiveness of modelling. The effects of the modelled scenes were clearest among children whose pre-modelling play consisted of object-centred actions including few of pretending. The post-modelling play of this subgroup showed better quality of action and language categories and integration measures. Among the decentred players no significant action …