Effect of exercise on psychomotor variables in mentally challeged children

Introduction: Significant limitations in intellectual functioning and in adaptive behavior are been observed in people with Mental retardation, which are expressed in their conceptual, social, and practical adaptive skills. This disability originates before the age of 18. The purpose of the present study was to determine the effect of 10-weeks exercise program on Psychomotor ability (reaction ability and speed of movement time) of mentally challenged (MC) children. Method: Total 30 trainable mentally challenged children (15) experimental group and (15) control group without multiple disabilities were selected for the present study. The mean age of the groups was 12.33±0.84 years. Experimental and control groups were tested for reaction time and speed of movement time and back word target throw before and after physical education training program for 10 weeks. All the participants selected were the children without previous physical activity experience. Results: comparative statistics showed significant difference in pre and post test measurements in all studied variables in the experimental group under study (p<0.05). It is concluded that participation in Physical Education training program improved psychomotor ability in MR children.