Understanding and Assessing the Interconnectedness of Motor and Cognitive Development: A Novel View on Complexity in Dual-Task Paradigms

Human development encompasses the integration of neuromotor, psychological, social-emotional, and cognitive processes across time. This paper seeks to advance the understanding of motor and cognitive development by proposing a novel assessment paradigm. Specifically, we aim to 1) provide a conceptual bridge, based on multidisciplinary evidence, to effectively link the concurrent development of motor competence and executive functions via learning-related and exercise-related neurotrophic mechanisms, and 2) use this conceptual bridge to inform the development of novel motor-cognitive dual-task assessments that account for the role of movement task complexity, current levels of motor competence, and the continuous decision-making inherent in real-world performance environments. Traditional assessments of motor competence have focused on skillfulness using restrictive protocols that decontextualize performance and limit cognitive involvement, while motor-cognitive dual-task assessments have minimized the impacts of movement task complexity and motor competence on cognitive performance. In contrast, our approach enhances the sensitivity of motor-cognitive assessments to individual differences while enabling a more nuanced exploration of the concurrent development of motor and cognitive systems, offering valuable insights for both research and applied settings.