Publications 2017
Feasibility of motor imagery training for children with Developmental Coordination Disorder - a pilot study
Children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) experience movement difficulties that may be linked to processes involved in motor imagery (MI). This paper discussesrecentadvancesintheorythatunderpintheuseofMItrainingforchildrenwith DCD. This knowledge is translated in a new MI training protocol which is compared with the cognitive orientation to daily occupational performance (CO-OP). Children meeting DSM-5 criteria for DCD were assigned to MI (n = 4) or CO-OP (n = 4) interventions and completed nine treatment sessions, including homework exercises. Results were positive, with two children in the MI group and three in the CO-OP group improving their m-ABC-2 score by ≥ 2 standard scores, interpreted as a clinically meaningful change. Moreover, all children and parents noticed improvements in motor skills after training. This is the first study to demonstrate the feasibility of a theoretically principled treatment protocol for MI training in children with DCD, and extends earlier work.
