PURPOSE:Manual dexterity is an important aspect of motor function across the age span. The purpose of this study was to present the norms for the 9-Hole Peg Test (9HPT) across the age span (3 to 85 yr) and to compare the 9HPT performance by age group, gender, dominance, handedness, ethnicity, race, and language preference.

METHOD:In this normative study that took place in a community setting, the final data included a convenience sample of 4,858 subjects stratified across 21 age bands—each year of age from 3 to 17 yr, 18 to 29 yr, 30 to 39 yr, 40 to 49 yr, 50 to 59 yr, 60 to 69 yr, and 70 to 85 yr—who were recruited across 10 collaborating sites. Individuals were eligible for inclusion if they were (1) community-dwelling and noninstitutionalized; (2) between 3 and 85 yr of age; (3) capable of following test instructions (English or Spanish); and (4) able to give informed consent or, in the case of children aged 8 yr or older, to give assent with accompanying informed consent by proxy (i.e., parent/guardian).

All subjects took 9HPT as part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Toolbox measures. We computed the mean and standard deviation of the 9HPT completion time by age groups and hand dominance. We used known groups construct validity methods to assess the performance of the 9HPT in individuals with different memberships. The independent variables assessed included age (3 to 6 yr, 7 to 12 yr, 13 to 17 yr, 18 to 39 yr, 40 to 59 yr, 60 to 85 yr), gender (male, female), handedness (right-handed, left-handed), ethnicity (Hispanic or Latino, not Hispanic or Latino), race (White, Black or African American), and language (English, Spanish, English bilingual, Spanish bilingual). To perform the analyses, we used one-way analyses of variance (ANOVAs) in which the dependent variable was 9HPT completion time for a trial using the dominant hand and nondominant hand.

RESULTS:The 16 to 39 age groups demonstrated the best performance (lowest scores; individuals completed a trial in 19 to 20 s for male subjects, and 18 to 19 s for female subjects using the dominant hand), and the youngest children 3 to 5 age groups showed the lowest performance and largest variation (highest scores; individuals completed a trial in 32 to 51 s for male subjects and 32 to 45 s for female subjects). Overall, female subjects performed slightly better as compared to male subjects (22.5 vs. 24.2 s). Dominant hands completed the test quicker than the nondominant hands (23.3 vs. 25.4 s). Individuals who were not Hispanic or Latino performed slightly better than individuals who were Hispanic or Latino (22.2 vs. 25.6 s). The completion time for English speakers was shorter than for Spanish speakers (22.3 vs. 27.8 s). There were no statistical differences by handedness (p = .6) and race (White vs. Black or African American; p = .4).

CONCLUSION:This study presents the norms of the 9HPT established by the NIH Toolbox.