Examining the psychometric properties of the digital scale of perceived motor competence in young children

This study examined the psychometric properties (i.e., reliability and validity) of the Digital Scale of Perceived Motor Competence (DSPMC) in preschool-aged children. One hundred eighteen children (M_age  = 4.5) completed Study 1 on internal consistency and test-retest reliability, and 87 children (M_age  = 4.5) completed Study 2 on construct validity. Study 1 results support that the DSPMC demonstrates an acceptable internal consistency at both the initial (α = 0.78) and retest (α = 0.75) and good test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.84; 95% CI = 0.76-0.89). Study 2 results demonstrate that the DSPMC is significantly correlated to two other measures of perceived competence (r_range  = 0.25-0.39) and all actual motor skill subscales (r_range  = 0.23-0.39). These results support that the DSPMC is a valid and reliable tool to measure perceived competence in young children.