Motor task persistence of children with and without mental retardation

Task persistence by 31 children with and without mental retardation during two challenging motor tasks was investigated We used a 2 (group) x 2 (gende r) MANOVA to analyze trials and seconds per trial. A main effect was found for group affiliation: Children without mental retardation attempted more t rials over three sessions. No significant differences were found for second s per trial, which indicated that all study participants experienced a comp arable level of failure in regard to seconds completed before failure. Find ings support the hypothesis that children with mental retardation are less persistent at challenging motor tasks than are peers without disabilities. These findings have both theoretical and practical imglications.