Journal of Sports and Motor Development and Learning
Year:2018 | Volume:10 | Issue:2|Papers Count:7

The present study aimed at investigating the effect of rich environment at home on the speed of acquisition progress in football dribbling skill of boys. The statistical population included children aged between 6 and 13 in district 1, Tehran city. The present study was semi-experimental with pretestposttest design. Based on the results of the distributed questionnaires, 30 subjects were selected as the sample and were divided into two groups: rich and non-rich. Firstly, both groups participated in football dribbling test as the pretest. Then, both rich and non-rich groups received training for 9 days and one session per day. At the end of each training session, both groups completed football dribbling test again. To compare the groups, the 2 × 9 mixed analysis of covariance was used, and dependent t test was applied to examine intragroup changes. Wilks Lambda index indicated that the effect of environment on the speed of learning progress was significant (F(9&19)=3. 27), P<0. 014, correlation ratio=0. 608). The rich group had a higher speed of learning progress than the non-rich group. The comparison of the training days of both groups showed that the rich group was significantly better than the non-rich group for all days except for day 4. The results of dependent t test showed a significant difference between pretest and day 9 in rich (P<0. 001) and non-rich (P<0. 001) groups. Overall, these results show that enriched home environment significantly improves the speed of learning progress.

According to numerous studies in sport psychology, it is proved that optimal athletic performance relates to many psychological factors and personality and psychological characteristics influence athletic development. The aim of this study was to investigate and compare mindfulness, emotional intelligence and mental toughness in successful and unsuccessful karate athletes in Iran men’ s karate super league. This research was casualcomparative and the population consisted of Iran men’ s karate super league in Kumite section in 2015. Primary data were collected by convenience sampling method from 70 athletes of all participating teams-especially two high ranking teams and three low ranking teams-in karate super league. After the data of the number of competitions and their results for each athlete were collected, the optimal performance of karate athletes was calculated and two successful and unsuccessful karate athletes groups were determined (each group 30 subjects). The form of content, the demographic questionnaire, Sport Mindfulness Scale, Schutte Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire and Mental Toughness Questionnaire (48 items) were used. The normal distribution of data in both groups were examined using the K-S and Shapiro-Wilk tests. The results of independent t test showed that the difference in mindfulness was not statistically significant between successful and unsuccessful karate athletes, but the emotional intelligence and mental toughness between successful and unsuccessful athletes were significantly different. Overall, it can be stated that a major part of these findings emphasize the role of the psychological characteristics in the sport performance and success of the two groups of elite karate athletes who have the highest rank in Asia and world karate.

Neonatal growth indices are one of the important issues in the assessment and care of pregnancy which have significant effects on the life after birth. Therefore, it is important to recognize their related factors. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between pregnant women's lifestyle and physical growth indices in newborns. This descriptive-comparative study was conducted on 412 pregnant women (mean age 28. 1± 5. 6 years) who referred to Mahdieh Hospital in Tehran by a cross-sectional and field method. Subjects were selected by convenience sampling method. Data were collected and recorded by Lifestyle Questionnaire (LSQ) and information about the growth indices of newborns from their medical records in Tehran Mahdieh Hospital. Then, growth indices were compared with NCHS standard norm (P≤ 0. 05). Independent and one-sample t tests and Pearson correlation were used to analyze the data. According to the results, the quality of lifestyle in pregnant women was reported to be moderate. Also, a comparison of weight and height indices showed a significant difference in the time intervals after birth in comparison with the NCHS norm (P≤ 0. 05) which indicated that this norm was lower than the global norm in Iranian infants. On the other hand, no significant difference was observed in the head circumference (P=0. 18). Considering the findings of this study on lifestyle and moderate physical activity in pregnant women, mothers are recommended to have more physical activity and to improve their nutritional quality so that they can promote their lifestyle and thereby improve the growth indices of newborns.

The aim of this study was to examine the effect of a course of physical exercise on cognitive function and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This semi-experimental study was performed with a pretest-posttest design. Participants included 25 male students aged between 7 and 10 who referred to the clinic of Ibn Sina Psychological Hospital in Mashhad. They were randomly divided into two groups: control and experimental. The experimental group participated in an exercise program for 24 sessions, 60 minutes per session. The control group did not receive any intervention. All participants performed Stroop test and go no go test before and after the exercise. Also, blood samples were collected to measure serum BDNF before and after the exercise intervention. The data were analyzed using ANCOVA. The results demonstrated a significant difference in total in cognitive function of the children in Stroop and go no go tests between the experimental and control groups (P<0. 05). Also, serum BDNF levels showed a significant increase (P=0. 001). These findings showed that an organized exercise program helps to improve cognitive function and BDNF in children with ADHD.

The aim of this study was to examine the positive effects of forced and voluntary exercises as a non-pharmacological factor on modified behaviors due to stress of separation from mother. In the present study, 48 male baby rats were selected and separated from their mothers from day 2 to 14 for 180 minutes. On the 21st day, these rats were randomly divided into 4 groups. The groups included maternal stress, control, treadmill, running wheel (RW). The first group experienced stress of separation from their mothers from day 2 to 14 and the control group was kept from the beginning with their mothers. The exercise groups also began to exercise since their 21st birth day. Then, the groups conducted behavioral anxiety and rodent depression tests including EPM, Splash, FST, and Open Field. The obtained data were statistically analyzed by t and ANOVA methods at a significance level (P<0. 05). Behavioral tests showed that the stress of separation from the mother caused depression behaviors. On the other hand, voluntary exercise caused antidepressant effects compared with the stress group while no significant changes were observed between the effect of forced exercise and the stress group. The results showed that exercise, especially voluntary exercise, reduces stress during adolescence, and reduces depression and anxiety behaviors in adulthood.

Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the common neurodevelopmental disorders in children that can produce several cognitive, social and educational difficulties. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of fundamental motor skills (FMS) on cognitive impulsivity, motor impulsivity and sustained attention in primary school children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms. The research method was quasiexperimental with pretest-posttest design. The study population consisted of all male students of state elementary schools in Shiraz city. The sample was 38 students with ADHD symptoms who were selected by multi-level sampling based on SNAP-IV. They were randomly assigned to two groups: control (17 subjects) and experimental (21 subjects). The experimental group trained for 10 sessions in the FMS program and the control group dealt with their daily activities. One session before and after the interventions, both groups were evaluated with continuous performance test, porteus maze test, O'Connor dexterity test and AAHPERD passing test. Data were analyzed by mixed ANOVA with repeated measures and indicated that FMS training can have a significant effect on children’ s performance with ADHD symptoms in motor impulsivity, but there was no evidence of the effect of the mentioned training on sustained attention and cognitive impulsivity. According to these findings, it can be concluded that short term FMS training can be useful for controlling movement and impulses in children with ADHD symptoms.

Children with intellectual disability experience many problems in their everyday lives and educational issues. One of these important issues exists in visual perception. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to examine the effect of sport vision training on visual perception of children with intellectual disability in Isfahan city. 30 children were selected from educable students with intellectual disability (7-11 years old) as the sample and were randomly assigned to two groups (each group 15 subjects): experimental and control. Before the training, children with intellectual disability underwent Wechsler IQ test and educable children entered the study. Also, before the training, the TVPS-II visual perception pretest was administered. Then, experimental group had their training for 8 weeks, 3 sessions per week and 45 minutes each session. In the final stage, TVPS-II visual perception pretest was conducted. Based on the results of the MANCOVA analysis (with the control of pretest scores) sport vision training had an effect on the mean of all visual perception components except for form constancy test in the posttest (P<0. 05). The results of this study showed that sport vision training can improve the visual perception of children with intellectual disability. Therefore, it is suggested that sport vision training is also used to treat and rehabilitate these children in the treatment process.