Fundamental Movement Skills Assessment Tool: A Validation Study of Balance Skills Using the Modified Delphi Method

Abstract Fundamental Movement Skills Assessment Tool: A Validation Study of Balance Skills Using the Modified Delphi Method ChangKi Hong Background: Physical activity (PA) has a number of health benefits such as weight-control and prevention of lifestyle diseases. Fundamental Movement Skills (FMS) are important since they provide a base for PA participation. Injury prevention should be considered within a movement assessment because injuries are inevitable consequences of PA participation. However, current movement assessment tools do not account for injury prevention aspects. Practitioners often have a limited evaluation of movement patterns that is related to musculoskeletal injuries. There is a need for a more robust movement assessment tool that includes an injury prevention component. Balance should be incorporated into the assessment tool since it has been found to support the development of movement competence and has been linked to musculoskeletal injury prevention. Objective: To establish face and content validity of balance skills (BSs) and the associated evaluation criteria, to create a FMS assessment tool to identify movement deficits while considering modifiable musculoskeletal injury risk factors. Method: Using the modified Delphi method, a panel of experts completed three rounds of surveys to evaluate the suitability of the item using a 5-point Likert scale. Consensus on the acceptance of an item required 75% in agreement among the panel members. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data. Results: Twenty-two of seventy invited experts (31.4%) participated. Twelve skills were initially proposed and the expert panel reached consensus on including three BSs (Single-leg side hop and hold, Two to one foot and hold, and 90-degree jump and hold) and twelve associated criteria. Conclusion: This study provided face and content validity evidence for a FMS assessment tool for children 8-12 years of age. The modified Delphi process resulted in the final list of selected BSs which can be used for further research to evaluate the feasibility and reliability of the tool in various settings. Keywords: Fundamental Movement Skills, Physical Literacy, Movement Competence, Balance, Physical Activity, Movement Assessment, Injury Prevention, Children, Delphi Method.