Comparison of Team and Individual Motor Activity Games on the Development of Elementary School Students’ Social Skills and Executive Functioning

This study compared team and individual motor activity games on the development of social skills and executive functioning of students.

This quasi-experimental study used a pretest-posttest design with a control group. The statistical population of the research consisted of all male students (256 subjects) of primary school in municipal Zone 4 of Tehran. The sample in the present study was estimated to be 30 students in 3 groups using G*POWER to achieve a test power of 0.8 and an effect size of 0.80. Cluster sampling method was used to select students. In the first stage, 5 schools, 1 class from each school, and 6 students from each class were randomly selected as samples. They were randomly and equally divided into 3 groups of team games, individual games, and the control group. The Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters-II (1983) was used to measure social skills, and The Barkley Deficits in Executive Functioning Scale—Children and Adolescents (BDEFS-CA) (2012) was used for executive functioning. In the present study, the designed experiment consisted of sixteen 60-min sessions (2 sessions per week); two types of experimental protocols including individual games and team games and also control conditions were used. Individual exercises included ten male students wherein each student performed the exercises with a coach. Team exercises included ten male students in the form of two teams who performed exercises as various activities and games.

By examining the results of difference in the means of the two intervention groups (team and individual exercises) and control group, it was found that in the sub-components of appropriate social skills, aggressiveness, and impulsive behaviors, the individual exercises group was more effective compared to the team exercises group (P<0.05). In the sub-components of non-social behaviors, superiority, high self-confidence, relationship with peers, and total social skills, the team exercises group was more effective compared to the individual exercises group (P<0.05). Besides, by examining the results of the difference in the means of the two intervention groups (team and individual exercises) and control group, it was found that the individual exercises group was more effective in the sub-components of self-organization, problem-solving, and self-motivation compared to the team exercises group (P<0.001). Yet, in the sub-component of self-management of time, self-control/inhibition, self-motivation, and total executive functioning, the team exercises group was more effective compared to the individual exercises group (P<0.001).

Based on the results of the research, it can be concluded that both team and individual exercises lead to the promotion of social skills and executive functioning in students. Moreover, compared to individual exercises, team exercises are superior in enhancing students’ social skills and executive functioning.