Psychomotor learning & development aims to foster diagnostic tools and interventions for promotion of specific aspects found within childhood development. Studying and analyzing changes and, further on, providing implementations via advanced education or lectures is the basis for a good transfer of knowledge into real life situations. Surpassing the boundaries of general developmental studies, this system incorporates influences at a psychomotor level on social interactions into the research field which allows for a holistic approach towards childhood development.

Basic developmental theories such as Paige’s Cognitive Development Theory and Newell’s Theory of Constraints represent underlying constructs. The combination of motoscopic and motometric techniques, which means a combined analysis based on sport motoric tests and quantitative measures, is used to assess children from prenatal age onwards. For the implementation, the target group does not solely include children but people who work with children on a pedagogical basis in elementary and primary school. Another topic which should be noted is supplementary research including sport motoric testing within schools and individual promotion within the pedagogical area relevant to individual development.

Techniques applied range from kinematic, kinetic, and qualitative motion tracking to tests conceiving developmental steps during childhood.

Currently running projects

• Skaten statt Ritalin

  The objective of the project “Skaten statt Ritalin®” is to provide an alternative therapy method to children and adolescents suffering from an attention deficit (hyperactivity) disorder or short AD(H)D. Movement therapy such as skateboarding has been proved to be a valuable and natural approach to lower the frustration tolerance and improve concentration ability over a longer time span. The project is a cooperative work with skate-aid international e.V., the district government of Münster, Prof. Dr. Patricia Ohrmann and the institute for movement science of the University Münster (WWU). A further cooperation is ongoing with the University of Lethbridge, Canada.
  Within a four-month weekly skateboarding workshop which is organized and carried out by skate-aid, the children are introduced to skateboarding under professional pedagogical and sport-related guidance of the skate-aid team. All participating children are furthermore equipped with their own skateboard, helmet, and protection set for the duration of the study, which they are free to use outside of the workshop.
  To establish the positive scientific effect of skateboarding as an additional therapy approach for children and adolescents with AD(H)D, the movement science team of the WWU, and the child psychiatry department of the UKM conduct several tests to assess motoric skills, attention and concentration abilities as well as social-emotional competencies before and after the workshop. Especially in the psychological tests, numerous children show great progress after the skateboarding intervention, likewise an improvement on the symptomatic level was confirmed by their parents whereupon the medication with Ritalin® can partially even be discontinued.
   

Our Team

• Christiane Bohn

  

  After studying physical education and Russian as a teacher in Münster, she completed a postgraduate degree in Motology in Marburg and a doctorate in biomechanics at the Goethe University in Frankfurt. Ms. Bohn has a permanent position at the Institute for Sports Science at the University of Münster. She is active in the academic training of physical education teachers with a focus on elementary school. Her research focuses on developmental diagnostics and developmental support of children and adolescents, especially with special needs such as ADHD.

• Tabea Christ

  

  Tabea received her Master of Science degree in Sports, Exercise and Human Performance from the University of Münster in 2022. She has been a part of the movement science lab since 2019 when she did her scientific internship at the department within the bachelor program. Directly after this she started working as a student assistant in the same work group. Tabea is mainly involved in the motor analysis part of the project “Skaten statt Ritalin”, where she helps to organize and conduct measurements with subjects as well as analyze and evaluate the data. Her PhD will focus on the analysis of motoric and cognitive abilities in children with a social-emotional impairment. Additionally, Tabea is teaching practical and theoretical courses in the bachelor of science program.

• Henrike Britz

  Henrike is a former student assistant who still occasionally supports the psychomotor lab with her expertise. She has been part of the movement science lab since 2022 where she started as scientific intern and further been engaged in the lab as student assistant. She has a bachelor’s degree in psychology as well as in the sport science programme human movement in sports and exercise.
  Henrike is mainly involved in the psycho-neuro-cognitive part of the project “Skaten statt Ritalin®” which includes planning and organising the subject recruitment and measurement dates as well as conducting the psychological part of the measurements. Furthermore, Henrike amalgamates the data and prepares it for further evaluation. Lastly, she works closely with the educational master students, supporting them in the statistical analysis and their thesis preparation.