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Sex differences in motor performance and motor learning in children and adolescents: an increasing male advantage in motor learning and consolidation phase gains

Behav Brain Res. 2009 Mar 2;198(1):165-71. doi: 10.1016/j.bbr.2008.10.033. Epub 2008 Nov 5.

Abstract

We investigated gender differences in motor performance in 9-, 12-, and 17-year-olds. The tasks included simple thumb tapping (sTT), handwriting (HW) and finger-to-thumb opposition sequence (FOS) learning. In sTT there was a significant advantage for the 17-year-old males. In HW, 12-year-old females were faster, initially, than the males, but this gap was closed by a single training session; in the 17-year-olds although no significant difference was found initially, the males became faster than the age-matched females post-training. In the FOS, there were no initial gender differences (speed or accuracy). However, males benefited more from training, with the 17-year-old males attaining a significant post-training speed advantage. Moreover, males, of all three age-groups, evolved significantly larger delayed ("off-line") performance gains in the FOS task compared to females; gains which were retained 6-weeks post-training. There may be a male advantage in motor learning rather than in motor performance per-se; this advantage is enhanced during adolescence.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Child
  • Female
  • Fingers / physiology
  • Functional Laterality / physiology*
  • Handwriting*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Memory / physiology*
  • Motor Skills / physiology
  • Practice, Psychological*
  • Psychomotor Performance / physiology*
  • Reaction Time / physiology
  • Sex Factors
  • Task Performance and Analysis
  • Thumb / physiology