Investigating the Effectiveness of a Course of Active Video Games on Motor Competence and Enjoyment of physical Activity in Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Lack of coordination and anxiety are major Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a neurodevelopmental condition, and if children with this disorder are not prevented and treated with timely interventions, they will have a low level of physical and mental health in adulthood. The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a course of active video games on motor competence and enjoyment of physical activity in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

 The method of the current research was semi-experimental with a pre-test-post-test design with a control group. The statistical population of this study consisted of 8-10-year-old male students (second, third, and fourth grade) of schools in Khoy city in the academic year of 1401-1400. Among them, 30 eligible students were selected and participated in the research based on the Connors rating scale of the parent form, the psychiatrist's opinion and the criteria for entering the research. To collect data, the enjoyment of physical activity questionnaire of Moore et al. (2009) and the motor competence test third edition (TGMD-3) were used. The participants of the experimental group played active video games for 8 weeks, 5 days a week, and each session lasted 60 minutes. The data were analyzed using the analysis of covariance test at a significance level of 0.05 and with SPSS version 24 software.

: The results showed that active video games improved motor skills (p<0.001) and increased the level of enjoyment of physical activity in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (p<0.001).

In general, based on the results of the present study, playing active video games can be effective in increasing the level of motor skills in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Also, playing these games can lead to the adherence of these children to the game by increasing the level of enjoyment of physical activity and then reducing the complications caused by inactivity.