The effect of exergaming use on the enhancement of the psycho-motor component of physical literacy

Abstract

A proposed use of exergaming is the enhancement of a child’s physical literacy. Physical literacy is defined as the fundamental physical, cognitive, and affective skills that are necessary for a person to confidently participate in physical activity. This study determined whether or not an exergaming intervention could improve physical literacy, specifically the psycho-motor component of agility, balance, and coordination among six to nine year old children. Pre and post-tests of agility, balance and coordination were compared for a control group and an experimental group. The experimental group completed an exergaming intervention that consisted of 12, 30-minute exergaming sessions spread out over seven and a half weeks. The experimental group demonstrated an improvement in agility (p = 0.02) whereas the control group showed none. There was no improvement found in either group in balance or coordination. More research is required to further explore the relationship between exergaming and physical literacy.