A Pilot Investigation of the Perceived Motor Competence of Children with Visual Impairments and Those Who Are Sighted

Because children with visual impairments tend to be inactive, they are 1.5 times more likely to be considered overweight or obese than are their sighted peers. Although some barriers to physical activity have been identified (for example, lack of opportunity and transportation issues); little has been done to empirically identify predictors of physical activity among this population. Given the importance of perceptions of motor competence during the early years of childhood, since it predicts physical activity and motor competence during adolescence, it is critical that perceptions of motor competence for young children with visual impairments are understood. Therefore, the purpose of this preliminary study was to examine the developmental trajectory of perceptions of motor competence of children ages 3 to 13 years, with and without visual impairments.