Investigated scoring agreement among three different training levels of Visual Motor Integration Test (VMI) diagnosticians. Correlational data demonstrated high interexaminer reliabilities; however, there were gross errors in precision after raw scores had been converted into VMI age equivalent scores. (Author/RC)

Research findings concerning attention, automation, and movement are reviewed. Research in the future should be concerned with the relationship between environmental context and action. (CJ)

Changes in information processing during child, adolescent, and adult development affect motor performance. Several of the memory processes that change with development produce increased performance, processing speed, and control processes. (CJ)

The impact of movement experiences on cognitive functions and academic achievement on students, in particular the learning-disabled, is described. Cognitive processes involved in the acquisition of motor skills and intellectual abilities are detailed. (CJ)

Two methods for approaching the problems of body segment contributions to motor performance are joint immobilization with restraint and resultant muscle torque pattern. Although the second approach is preferred, researchers face major challenges when using it. (CJ)

Project: Stop-Gap, an in-service teacher training program at Temple University is designed to accommodate the training needs and mandates of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975, as they relate to physical education and motor development. (JMF)

The adequacy of biting, sucking, swallowing, and chewing as well as the presence or absence of nine infantile oral reflexes were assessed in 60 cerebral palsied individuals (ages 3 to 23). (Author/PHR)

The movement approach to teaching soccer is appropriate on the elementary level because the skills can be self-learned through problem solving, exploration, and guided discovery. (JMF)

An example of a stability movement course for preschool children is presented. (JMF)

Tests indicate that males have better performance than females in motor performance tests, with the exception of flexibility; black children ran significantly faster than white children in the 30-yd dash, but significant race differences were not evident on any other motor items. (JD)

Used writing tasks recorded on a computer-monitored XY tablet to differentiate between normal variations in psychomotor development and dysgraphia in 16 young children. Found that control of spatial accuracy, not allograph retrieval or size control, discriminated dysgraphic children from others. Poor writers were less accurate than proficient…

Examines the meaning of reaction time (RT) and the possibility that it may predict other cognitive and motor skills in the first year of life. Considers two competing models that specify the information-processing components underlying RT performance. Describes the neural data needed to definitively choose between the models and considers…

Notes that observational learning of a motor skill involves both observation of the model and self-observation. Examines observation of the modeled performance, including three moderators of observational learning: the properties of the model, the nature of the task, and observer determinants. Observer determinants are examined at length,…

A pretest-posttest control group design was used to measure the effect of practical life materials (e.g., tweezers, tongs, spoons) on kindergarten children's fine motor skill development. Experimental and control group teachers reported equal amounts of fine motor activity in their classrooms; however, significant interaction effects were found…

Explored how parents appraise their children and use information about child development in appraisal process. Utilized structured interview with 100 parents seeking well-child pediatric care. Proposes four-part model of the appraisal process based on findings that parents observe, compare, appraise, and explain the appraisals of their child's…