ArticleFrontiers in behavioral neuroscience2023
Differential features of early childhood motor skill development and working memory processing: evidence from fNIRS.
Article in Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 18 citations in OpenAlex.
- Advances and trends in the application of functional near-infrared spectroscopy for pediatric assessments: a bibliometric analysis.Frontiers in neurology · 2024Pooled it
- Self-directed music play to improve executive function in young children using NIRS.Scientific reports · 2025Trial
- Early Childhood Movement- and Arts-Based Experiences and Executive Functions: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Evaluating a neural-efficiency account of the association between motor competence and attentional stability in preschoolers: An fNIRS study.Developmental cognitive neuroscience · 2026Article
- Assessing Motivation in Cerebral Palsy During Rehabilitation: A Systematic Review.Brain sciences · 2026Review
- Relationships Among Activity, Motor Skill Performance and Executive Function in Preschool Children: Observational Report.Child: care, health and development · 2026Observational
- Screen exposure in relation to cool and hot executive functions in preschoolers: parenting processes as mediators and parental growth mindset as moderator.BMC psychology · 2026Article
- Predictive associations between brain functional connectivity, motor abilities, and executive function development in early childhood: a longitudinal machine learning study.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation · 2026Article
- An examination of the cognitive and affective processes in errorless motor learning: study protocol.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Developmental characteristics of orientation and differentiation abilities in the control of jumping distance in preschool children.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2025Article
- The effects of an acute Tai Chi on emotional memory and prefrontal cortex activation: a fNIRS study.Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Objective: The study investigated the differential characteristics associated with motor skill development and working memory processing during early childhood, thereby providing insights for understanding motor learning and cognitive development in young children. Methods: In total, 101 preschool children (age: 4-6 years) were recruited for this study. The motor skill development level and the working memory capacity of the children were assessed using the MOBAK Motor Development Assessment Scale and a block task paradigm, respectively. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy brain imaging technology was used to monitor hemodynamic signals in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) of the children while they completed different memory tasks. MATLAB software and the Homer2 plugin were used to calculate the oxygenated hemoglobin (Oxy-Hb) concentration in relevant brain regions during the tasks. Results: (1) The low motor skill group exhibited significantly lower accuracy during the three-memory load condition than during the two-memory load condition. Under both two-memory and three-memory load conditions, the high motor skill group exhibited significantly higher accuracy than the low motor skill group. (2) Significant differences in the Oxy-Hb concentration were observed in the left dorsolateral PFC (L-DLPFC), and right and left triangular part of the Broca's area (R-PTBA and L-PTBA, respectively) between the two memory difficulty levels for the high motor skill group. The Oxy-Hb concentration was significantly higher during the three-memory load condition than during the two-memory load condition. Under the two-memory load condition, the high motor skill group exhibited significantly higher Oxy-Hb concentration in the L-DLPFC and L-PTBA regions than in the low motor skill group. Under the three-memory load condition, the high motor skill group exhibited significantly higher Oxy-Hb concentration in the L-DLPFC, R-PTBA, and L-PTBA regions than the low motor skill group. Conclusion: A close association was observed between the motor skill levels and working memory in young children, with higher motor skill levels being associated with more pronounced brain activation patterns during working memory tasks.
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