Relationship of Quantitative Measures of Jumping Performance with Gross Motor Development in Typically Developed Preschool Children

Jumping is a key movement developing in the preschool period, but limited studies have reported the determinants of jumping performance and its relationship with gross motor development. This study aimed to determine the correlations among jumping performance, quantitative parameters of jumping, and gross motor development in preschool children. Twenty-one preschool children were recruited from one kindergarten, and fifteen of them with complete data were further analyzed. The quantitative parameters of standing long jump (SLJ) and standing vertical jump (SVJ) were measured using a video-based motion capture system. The gross motor development was measured using the Preschooler Gross Motor Quality Scale (PGMQ). The Spearman’s rho value and a linear regression model were used to determine the relationships among the jumping performance, the quantitative measures, and the total PGMQ scores. The results indicate that the jumping performances were significantly correlated with the takeoff velocity, which was predicted by trunk inclination before takeoff in SLJ and by the ranges of trunk inclination during jumping in SVJ. Regression analysis showed that the preschool children with higher normalized jump height had better gross motor development, and that the jump performance and the gross motor development were directly or indirectly predicted by the slope of the hip-to-ankle angle plot during pre-takeoff. In conclusion, this study identifies key components of jumping in jumping performance and gross motor development in preschool children for physical education.