Presenter Name:Chantal Carrillo

School/Affiliation:McMaster University

Co-Authors:Dobri Dotov and Laurel J. Trainor

Abstract:

Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder involving deficits in motor coordination. Children show deficits in motor and visual-motor timing, but auditory-motor timing synchronization has not been well studied, despite its importance for general motor skills. In our previous study, children with probable DCD (pDCD) and typically developing (TD) children tapped their hand on a drum during metronome tapping, continuation tapping (maintaining tapping after the metronome stops), and tapping to the beat of music. We found that children with pDCD tapped significantly less consistently compared to the TD children, but both groups tapped more consistently with the presence of an auditory cue. In our current follow up study, 70 participants aged 9-12 (n_pDCD = 23) learned a more complex step-clap movement in the same condition blocks as our previous study (metronome, continuation, and music). We hypothesize that with this more complex step, children with pDCD will show an even greater deficit (higher variability) compared to TD children, but that both groups will still perform less variably with the presence of auditory cues. Data collection is ongoing on the online platform LookIt. In order to track the participants’ movements, we are using the 2D motion tracking software DeepLabCut. The coordinates of the hands, feet, and head will be analyzed to measure synchronization of movement to the auditory stimuli, as well as the coordination between limbs. The results are important for informing whether auditory-motor training may confer additional benefit over motor training alone for children with DCD.