The relationship between motor skills and social development in 6-12 years old typically developing children: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND

Motor skill development plays a pivotal role in children's holistic development, including both physical fitness and social competence. This systematic review examined the specific relationships between motor skill components (gross and fine motor skills) and three core domains of social development (social cognition, social emotion, and social behavior) in typically developing children aged 6-12 years.

METHODS

We conducted a systematic search across eight databases (Web of Science, Scopus, EBSCOhost, PubMed, ScienceDirect, CNKI, Wanfang, and VIP) from inception through April 2026. After initial title/abstract screening, full texts were reviewed against inclusion criteria. Two researchers independently performed study selection and quality assessment, with a third researcher resolving discrepancies.

RESULTS

From 8,252 initially identified records, 22 studies met inclusion criteria. Analysis revealed: (1) overall motor skills showed weak-to-moderate positive correlations (r = 0.008-0.549) with social development; (2) gross motor skills demonstrated stronger associations (weak-to-strong; r = 0.198-0.762) than fine motor skills (weak-to-moderate; r = 0.060-0.534); (3) research focus was unevenly distributed, with self-perception being most studied (59.1%), followed by peer relationships, problematic behaviors, and negative emotions (18.2% each), adaptive behaviors (13.6%), and emotion recognition (4.5%).

CONCLUSION

Findings suggest that motor skills are consistently associated with social development outcomes, with particularly strong evidence for gross motor skills. Future research should investigate underlying mechanisms and long-term effects through longitudinal designs.

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: The complete registration record is available at: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD42025645601. This systematic review was prospectively registered in PROSPERO on February, 2025 under the registration number CRD42025645601.