Motor Development of Native American Children on the Peabody Developmental Motor Scales

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Native American children have not been widely represented in the normative samples of standardized tests assessing motor development. This study investigated the cultural relevance of the Peabody Developmental Motor Scales (PDMS) in 2-year-old Native American children who are typically developing. METHOD: The PDMS was administered to a sample of 44 Pueblo children who were 24 months through 35 months of age and typically developing. Each child's family also completed a parent questionnaire addressing the child's development and family demographics. Participant scores were compared with those of the normative sample. RESULTS: The sample scored significantly lower than the normative sample (p < or = .001) on the Fine Motor Scale, and, when gender was taken into consideration, all but the older girls (30 months-35 months of age) had significantly lower scores. All but the younger girls (24 months-29 months of age) scored within the normal range on the Gross Motor Scale. CONCLUSION: Our results with this small sample suggest that caution be used when comparing motor performance (especially fine motor abilities) of 2-year-old Native American children against the PDMS normative data.

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