An increasing worldwide concern about a decline in the
quality of the motor ability of children was the motivation for
this exploratory comparative study. It involves a comparison of
the motor ability of children aged 8 and 9 years from Hamburg
(n=774), Melbourne (n=141) and Cape Town (n=81). Since each of
these global cities represents a typically culturally diverse modern
center of population, data were also tentatively analyzed according
to ethno-cultural background, as a potential contributing variable
to better understand the results of studies such as these.
The children’s motor abilities were tested by five items from
the Allgemeiner Sportmotorischer Test für Kinder or AST 6
– 11 (Bös, Opper, Woll, Liebisch, Breithecker, & Kremer, 2001).
Results were analyzed in terms of city and sex by means of a twoway
Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). A composite motor profile
was also constructed using all five items. This was then used in a
further comparison of major ethno cultural groups within each of
the three cities.
Differences in motor ability were evident between the children
of the three cities. The children from Hamburg demonstrated the
highest levels of performance overall and those of Melbourne the
lowest. Both sex and ethno-cultural background were significant
mediating variables in all contexts. Boys scored higher than girls
on the AST 6-11 at all locations. For children of a European
background in both Hamburg and Melbourne, a higher performance
was identified when compared with their same city peers of Asian
origins. The best performing cultural group overall were the Black
African (Xhosa) children of Cape Town. The limitations of the
study were identified and some suggestions for future comparative
studies of motor ability were made.