Published online by Cambridge University Press: 29 October 2015
This study investigated subgroup and task specificity of self-paced timing in children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD). Self-paced tempo (intertap interval) and timing stability (coefficient of variation) were measured in three repetitive tasks—hand tapping, foot tapping, and jumping in place—in 37 children aged 6 to 9 years classified into gross motor impaired (GM), fine and gross motor impaired (F&G), or coordinated control (CC) groups. Results showed that, although tempo did not vary between coordination groups, timing stability for the hand was significantly worse for the F&G motor impaired group (p < .05). Discriminant function analysis correctly classified 75% of CC, 67% of F&G, and 67% of GM children. Although timing inconsistency of hand tapping identified a coordination subgroup, these tasks provide only moderate prediction of group membership.