Exploratory study of children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD), aged 7-12 years, learning new-motor based skills, post CO-OP intervention (Cognitive Orientation to daily Occupational Performance).

Children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) have a marked
impairment in the performance of motor skills. This impairment can have
significant negative impact on every day activities of childhood e.g.,
dressing, riding a bike, hand writing. It also may lead to secondary mental
health and educational problems.
*Cognitive Orientation to daily Occupational Performance (CO-OP) is a
client-centered, performance-based, problem solving approach that enables skill
acquisition through a process of strategy use and guided discovery* (Polatajko
& Mandich, 2004, p. 2). Several studies demonstrated the effectiveness of CO-OP
with children with DCD, aged 5-12. In this task-oriented approach, guided
discovery and homework are used to support skill transfer, a major objective of
the approach.
Empirical evidence on transfer (degree to which learning one skill influences
the learning of another skill) shows that children do learn new motor-based
skills by themselves seven till twelve months after intervention. But we don*t
know how they do this. How do children go about learning, post intervention? Do
they use the strategies acquired during CO-OP? Are they able to discover new
strategies themselves?

Gaining knowledge on how children with DCD post CO-OP intervention go about
learning new motor based skills, and if, and what cognitive strategies they use
then.
These insights might contribute to the work of occupational therapists who
provide the CO-OP approach for children with DCD. They ofter receive
questions/remarks from parents and significant others about the problems the
children are facing, about how to support the children during their daily
activities.

This research will focus on two questions:
1. How do children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) go about
learning new motor-based skills after occupational therapy with Cognitive
Orientation to daily Occupational Performance (CO-OP) intervention?
2. Do they use strategies and if so, what cognitive strategies do they report?

This research will be conducted as a mixed method research. The first question
will be addressed in the qualitative tradition using the Interpretative
Phenomenological Analysis as described by Smith et al., (2009). The second
question will be addressed within a descriptive quantitative approach using the
retrospective Think Aloud Protocol Analysis, verbal reports as data described
by Ericcson & Simon (1993).

Burden for the occupational therapist:
- monitor if a child is meeting the in/exclusion criteria
- giving the researcher the possibility to check the occupational therapy file.

Burden for the parents:
- read the information letter, discuss it with the child
- organising, planning the appointments with the researcher and child
- allow the researcher to carry out the research in the home situation

Burden for the child:
- spending ± 2 hours with the researcher
- participating twice in an interview
- allowing the researcher to record the performance of a motor-based skill on
video

Potential risks are a possible confrontation for the child regarding his way of
learning, his performing motor-based skills. This can cause some emotional
disturbance.