Humboldt State University professor Sheila Kelly has often pondered whether a child's motor skills have any effect on their perceived self-confidence, body weight and activity as an adult.
"There's a link between how physically active kids are when they're young and how active they are as adults," Kelly said.
In order to explore childhood body weight and how it translates to a child's physical capabilities, Kelly did a research project with more than 100 fourth graders. Her research made some discoveries that earned her a trip to Boston this month.
Kelly will give a presentation on her work March 16 during an awards dinner. She recently won the National Association for Sport and Physical Education's sport and exercise psychology dissertation award.
A professor of mainly sport and exercise psychology at HSU, Kelly completed her dissertation research while attending school in Michigan and interacting with school children there. She said her research showed a child's physical activity has a direct correlation with self-confidence.
"The more active they are, the more they'll perceive their self-confidence to be higher in a number of areas," Kelly said.
In addition, Kelly said she found that a child's object control skills, such as being able to bounce a ball, are more important in regard to body weight and self-confidence than locomotive skills, such as walking or skipping. She said the most self-confident children all have similar traits.
"Having a healthy body mass index, high levels of aerobic capacity and being proficient in object control skills (is key)," Kelly said.
With childhood obesity a hot topic across the nation, Kelly said she looks forward to continuing her research in Humboldt. According to a recent study by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research and the California Center for Public Health Advocacy, Humboldt youth in grades five through seven had a 3.5 percent increase in obesity from 2005 to 2010. In Del Norte County, obesity rose 16.2 percent during this time frame, while Trinity County saw a 29 percent decrease. Overall, the state recorded a 1.1 percent decrease in obesity rates from 2005 to 2010.
Kelly said she's interested in expanding her research and exploring how different factors play a role in a child's weight, self-confidence and motor skills.
"I'm interested in the difference between different races and ethnicities and socioeconomic statuses," Kelly said.
Megan Hansen can be reached at 441-0511 or firstname.lastname@example.org.