Free
Research Article
Issue Date: August 1988
Published Online: August 01, 1988
Updated: April 30, 2020
A Comparison of Motor Performance of Preschoolers Enrolled in Mental Health Programs and Non–Mental Health Programs
Lois Arms Kramer; Jean C. Deitz; Terry K. Crowe
Author Affiliations
  • Lois Arms Kramer, MS, OTR/L, is in private practice in pediatric occupational therapy, 6665 Kimball Drive, Gig Harbor, Washington 98335. She is also an Adjunct Faculty Member at the University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, Washington
  • Jean C. Deitz, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA, is Assistant Professor in the Division of Occupational Therapy, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
  • Terry K. Crowe, MS, OTR/L, is a lecturer in the Division of Occupational Therapy, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle
Article Information
Mental Health / Pediatric Evaluation and Intervention / Features
Research Article   |   August 01, 1988
A Comparison of Motor Performance of Preschoolers Enrolled in Mental Health Programs and Non–Mental Health Programs
American Journal of Occupational Therapy, August 1988, Vol. 42, 520-525. https://doi.org/10.5014/ajot.42.8.520
American Journal of Occupational Therapy, August 1988, Vol. 42, 520-525. https://doi.org/10.5014/ajot.42.8.520
This content is PDF only. Please click on the PDF icon to access.
Abstract

Recognizing that the etiologies of some major mental illnesses may be in the physical domain, this study described and compared the motor performance of 27 preschool children enrolled in mental health programs with 27 children enrolled in Project Head Start, a non–mental health program. The two groups were matched for age, race, and sex. The Gross and Fine Motor scales of the Peabody Developmental Motor Scales were administered to all subjects. On both measures the children enrolled in mental health programs scored significantly lower than the children enrolled in Project Head Start. In addition their scores were more variable. The results of this study support other findings suggesting that developmental delays may be characteristic of children with emotional disturbances.