Underachievement and Fine

Motor Skills

Prof. Dr. Albert Ziegler, Ulm University, Germany

Secretary-General of the
International Research Association for Talent Development and Excellence (IRATDE)

Introduction:
- Underachievement is one of the most disturbing and enduring
problems in gifted education.
- The most common component of the various definitions of
underachievement involves identifying a discrepancy between
ability and achievement (Reis & McCoach, 2000).

For example
Shaw (1964) suggested labeling a child an underachiever when his/her
intellectual abilities (IQ) are measured to be among the top 25% of his/her
class, and his/her scholastic achievements are below the class average.
Hanses and Rost (1998) defined highly gifted underachievers as school
children with an intelligence percentile of at least 96, and an achievement
percentile not higher than 50.

Many other authors (e.g. Ziegler & Stoeger, 2006) chose as criteria an IQ of
130 and above, and a scholastic achievement level of at least one standard
deviation below this score.

Grades

IQ

 For example

Shaw (1964) suggested labeling a child an underachiever when his/her

intellectual abilities (IQ) are measured to be among the top 25% of his/her
class, and his/her scholastic achievements are below the class average.

Hanses and Rost (1998) defined highly gifted underachievers as school

children with an intelligence percentile of at least 96, and an achievement
percentile not higher than 50.
Many other authors (e.g. Ziegler & Stoeger, 2006) chose as criteria an IQ of
130 and above, and a scholastic achievement level of at least one standard
deviation below this score.

However, these cut-off points are completely random.

 The missing consensus regarding a precise operational diagnosis of

underachievement makes it impossible to introduce a standard
applicable diagnostic process.
Depending on the definition of underachievement researchers
estimate the proportion of underachievers among students up to
50%

 Potential causes for underachievement

discussed in the literature (e.g. Butler-Por, 1986,
2003; Rimm, 2003):

motivational deficits
underdeveloped learning and work skills
inadequate control convictions
poor ability self-concepts
developmental factors
personality parameters
environmental factors and detrimental influences
exercised by socialization agents

What is in the research literature

considered as the most important
cause of underachievement?

- In the research literature motivational deficits are discussed as the

most important reason for underachievement (McCoach & Siegle,
2003).

What is in the research literature

considered as the cause of least
importance for underachievement?

- In contrast, the topic of fine motor skills has been consistently

disregarded in previous empirical investigations.

Empirical findings on the relationship between fine motor

skills and achievement:
-

Fine motor skills have a significant meaning for the attainment of various milestones in
early childhood that are prerequisites of achievement behavior, such as using and
holding writing instruments, paintbrushes, rulers and scissors, turning the pages of a
book etc. (Cantell et al., 1994; Losse et al., 1991)

Fine motor skills are consistently positively correlated with optical differential abilities,
reaction speed and intelligence (e.g. Wasserberg et al., 2005).

Positive relations have also been shown between fine motor skills and achievement.
e.g. fine motor skills of pre-school children are among the best predictors of later
performance on standardized achievement tests in the first grade (Vacc et al.,
1987).
further studies confirm correlations between fine motor skills and scholastic
performance through to at least the end of primary school (Baedke, 1980).

- The mentioned research findings deliver first cues that deficits in fine
motor skills might have an influence on underachievement of gifted
students.
- However, with respect to the explanation of underachievement
among gifted persons, deficits in fine motor skills have been fully
neglected.

In two empirical studies we made first attempts to

establish relations between scholastic underachievement
among gifted children and deficits in fine motor skills.

 Study 1 (participants):

398 pupils in the 4th grade from 24 classes attending 12 different German
primary schools

Each pupil completed a German version of the Culture Fair Intelligence

Test (CFT)

Reported here are the results obtained from those pupils who, according
to Gagn (2004), can be considered gifted (top 10%)

Students whose average scholastic performances in the three subjects of

Mathematics, German (native language) and Science were at least one
standard deviation below their results on the intelligence test are referred
to as underachievers.

Among the 63 gifted pupils identified, 15 were found to be underachievers

according to this criterion.

Ziegler, A., Stger, H. & Martzog, P. (2008). Feinmotorische Defizite als Ursache des Underachievements
begabter Grundschler. Diskurs Kindheits- und Jugendforschung, 3, 53-66.

Study 1 (Measuring instruments):

Confidence in own abilities:

Work behavior:
scale)

6 Items (six-point Likert

Motivational orientation:
scale)

30 Items (six-point Likert

Learning goal orientation

Performance avoidance goal orientation
Performance approach goal orientation

4 Items (six-point Likert scale)

6 Items
12 Items
12 Items

Crombach > .70 for all scales

Concentration:

Scholastic grades: mathematics, German (native language), science

assessed by teachers on a six-point Likert scale

Ziegler, A., Stger, H. & Martzog, P. (2008). Feinmotorische Defizite als Ursache des Underachievements
begabter Grundschler. Diskurs Kindheits- und Jugendforschung, 3, 53-66.

Fine motor skills:

On this page you see a double black line. Use a sharpened pencil to draw a line
between the two black lines. Try to be as fast as possible. Also make sure that
you dont touch the black line with your pencil.

Hypotheses:

1) There are no mean differences between achievers and underachievers on

intelligence but on scholastic achievements.
2) There are mean differences between achievers and underachievers on
motivational orientations, work behavior, fine motor skills, concentration,
and confidence in own ability.
3) Confidence in own ability, work behavior, motivational orientations,
concentration, fine motor skills and the interaction term of these variables
predict students group membership as either gifted achievers or gifted
underachievers.

1) There are no mean differences between achievers and

underachievers on intelligence but on scholastic achievements.
100%
3,50

90%
80%

3,00

60%
2,50

50%

Grade

Percentile (CFT)

70%

40%

2,00

30%
20%

1,50

10%
0%

1,00

Underachiever

Achiever

t(61) = -.29, p > .10

Underachiever

Achiever

t(61) = - 7.88, p < .001

2) There are mean differences between achievers and underachievers

on motivational orientations, work behavior, fine motor skills,
concentration, and confidence in own ability.
Fine motor skills

Concentration and
Confidence in own ability

25
Underachiever

Achiever

15
4

Mean
Mittelwerte

Border contact
Randberhrungen

20

10

Underachiever

Achiever

t(61) = 2.34, p <. 05

Concentration
t(61) = 4.38, p < .001

Confidence in own ability

t(61) = 2.34, p < .05

3) Motivational orientations, work behavior, fine motor skills, concentration,

confidence in own ability and the interaction term of these variables
predict students group membership as gifted achievers or underachievers.

Logistic regression analysis (Forward Ward, Pin: .05, Pout: .10)

Dichotomous dependent variable: achievement vs. underachievement
Predictor variables: confidence in own ability, work behavior, motivational
orientations, concentration, fine motor skills and the interaction term of
these variables

3) Confidence in own ability, work behavior, motivational orientations,

concentration, fine motor skills and the interaction term of these variables
predict students group membership as gifted achievers or underachievers.
Results:

Significant predictors:
Concentration ( = 1.41, Wald = 11.70, p < .01)
Concentration x fine motor skills ( = .14, Wald = 4.65, p < .05)

84% of the participants could be allocated to the correct group (achievers

vs. underachievers) on the basis of these two variables.

- Although our study provides the most meaningful results

concerning relations between fine motor skills and
underachievement of gifted students so far, the study had two
weaknesses:

a) concentration was only assessed by teacher observation

b) concentration was not assessed differentially

- Therefore, in a second study we applied the d2, a standardized test

which permits to measure not only the total volume of
concentration but also the error rate which should be especially
useful to predict underachievement.

 Study 2: Method
-

576 pupils in the 4th grade from 23 classes attending 15 different German
primary schools

Each pupil completed a German version of the Culture Fair Intelligence

Test (CFT)

Reported here are the results obtained from those pupils who can be
considered gifted (top 10%)

Students whose average scholastic performances in the three subjects of

Mathematics, German (native language) and Science were at least one
standard deviation below their results on the intelligence test are referred
to as underachievers.

Among the 128 gifted pupils identified, 31 were found to be

underachievers according to this criterion.

Stoeger, H., Ziegler, A., & Martzog, P. (2008). Deficits in fine motor skill as an important factor in the identification
of gifted underachievers in primary school. Psychology Science Quarterly, 134-147.

Fine motor skills:

On this page you see a double black line. Use a sharpened pencil to draw a line
between the two black lines. Try to be as fast as possible. Also make sure that
you dont touch the black line with your pencil.

Concentration (d2)

Scholastic grades: mathematics, German (native language), science

1 = best grade, 6 = worst grade

Hypotheses:

1) There are no mean differences between achievers and underachievers on

intelligence but on scholastic achievements.

2) There are mean differences between achievers and underachievers on

fine motor skills.
3) There are mean differences between achievers and underachievers on
concentration.
4) Fine motor skills, concentration and the interaction term of these two
variables predict students group membership as either gifted achiever or
gifted underachiever.

1) There are no mean differences between achievers and

underachievers on intelligence but on scholastic achievements.
3

100%
90%
2,5

70%

60%

Grades

Percentages ( CFT )

80%

50%

1,5

40%
1

30%
20%

0,5

10%
0

0%

Underachiever

Achiever

t(126) = 1.41, p > .10

Underachiever

Achiever

t(126) = 11.28, p < 0.001

2) There are mean differences between achievers and underachievers

on fine motor skills.

14

12

Border Contact

10

t(126) = 2.36, p < .05

Underachiever

Achiever

3) There are mean differences between achievers and underachievers on

concentration.
t(126) = 0.10, p > .10

4) Fine motor skills, concentration and the interaction term of these two variables
predict students group membership as either gifted achiever or gifted
underachiever.

logistic regression analysis (Forward Ward, Pin: .05, Pout: .10)

dichotomous dependent variable: achievement vs. underachievement

predictor variables: fine motor skills, concentration, interaction term

Results:

Significant predictors:
fine motor skills ( = -.11, Wald = 8.74, p < 0.01)
interaction term ( = .01, Wald = 2.64, p < 0.05)

73% of the participants could be allocated to the correct group (achievers

vs. underachievers) on the basis of these two variables.

Among underachievers pupils with errors in the concentration test and

simultaneously fine motor skills were over-represented.

52% of such cases among underachievers

21% of such cases among achievers

Stoeger, H., Ziegler, A., & Martzog, P. (2008). Deficits in fine motor skill as an important factor in the identification
of gifted underachievers in primary school. Psychology Science Quarterly, 134-147.

How Fine Motor Skills Influence the

Assessment of
High Abilities and Underachievement in Math
Some IQ Test place a high demand on fine motor skills
In a study we administered a speed IQ test and a power
IQ test
Only one fourth of the gifted children were identified
by both IQ tests
Furthermore it could be shown that, when using the IQ
test that places low demands on fine motor skills, more
underachievers could be identified than with the test
that places high demands on fine motor skills.

Future research: New Measurements

Movies
Feuer: Speed
Klingel: Strength, endurance, arm-handcoordination
Kugeln: Sleight of hand, dexterity
Stifte: Sleight of hand, dexterity
Tracing: Sleight of hand, dexterity
Zielen: Speed, sleight of hand, dexterity

Future research: Cross-cultural studies

 Implications:
In future efforts to identify gifted schoolchildren, care should be given to
utilize measuring instruments which place little demand on fine motor
skills.
E.g. the implementation of speed tests to measure cognitive abilities
would overlook a segment of pupils with deficits in fine motor skills and
the type II error would be raised.
Deficits in fine motor skills should be reduced as early as possible
otherwise a cumulation of performance deficit might occure.

When implementing giftedness programs one should be aware that

students with deficits in fine motor skills might not benefit as much as
other students. Thus, either, programs should be developed in which fine
motor skills are insignificant or students with fine motor skill deficits
should be trained beforehand.

 Thank you for your attention!