Relative Age Effect on Youth Female Volleyball Players: A Pilot Study on Its Prevalence and Relationship With Anthropometric and Physiological Characteristics

AbstractThe relative age effect (RAE), within the sporting scope, refers to the possible advantages of participation and performance of athletes born in the first months of the year of selection in relation to others within the same age category. The aim of the present study was to investigate the RAE in girls’ volleyball players participating in the U-18 World Championship, analysing the differences between the medal teams and other teams in the tournament, and considering this phenomenon in relation to the continents. Data collection was obtained from the website of the International Volleyball Federation with a sample made of 1654 youth players in the last six world championships (2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017). A greater representation of athletes born in the first months of the year of all the world championships was observed. In the comparison among the continents, it was observed that in Africa, there was a more equal distribution of quartiles compared to America, Asia and Europe. It should be noted that there was a higher percentage of medalist athletes born at the beginning of the year in comparison to the countries that placed in the last three positions of the championship. Therefore, in U-18 female volleyball, there is an advantage to have the closest birth age at the beginning of the competitive biennium.

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Relative Age Effect of Sport Academy Adolescents, a Physiological Evaluation

Sports ◽

10.3390/sports8010005 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 5

Author(s):

Staffan Ek ◽

Per Wollmer ◽

Magnus K. Karlsson ◽

Tomas Peterson ◽

Ola Thorsson ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Selection Process ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Age Effect ◽

Physiological Characteristics ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Significant Group ◽

Relative Age ◽

Relative Age Effect ◽

Fitness Parameters ◽

Lower Body Power

The relationship between birth quarter distribution and physiological characteristics related to athletic skills, in adolescent sport academy students has not been fully investigated. In a cross-sectional study, we recruited 86 boys and 52 girls aged 12–14 years during their first term at a sport academy school. We measured body size, cardiac size, pulmonary function, body composition, lower body power, cardiorespiratory fitness parameters, and running endurance by standard methods and analyzed these estimates in relation to birth quarter by ANOVA. Birth quarter distribution in our cohort was compared with birth quarter distribution in the same ages in the whole of Sweden and analyzed by logistic regression. The academy had an overrepresentation of students born in the first quartile of the year compared to those born in the last quartile (odds ratio 2.3 (95% CI: 1.1–4.7)). When comparing the physiological characteristics between birth quarters, uniformity is prominent since out of 26 performed physiological and anthropometric tests only four showed statistically significant group differences. We thus believe that the selection process to the sport academy favours athletes with higher chronological age, i.e., a so-called relative age effect is present.

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Relative Age effect of Dance : Focused on college Dance major

Korean Journal of Sports Science ◽

10.35159/kjss.2019.02.28.1.995 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 28 (1) ◽

pp. 995-1004

Author(s):

Hye-Ryeon Kim ◽

Ji-Yong Lee

Keyword(s):

Age Effect ◽

Relative Age ◽

Relative Age Effect

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Born Leaders: The Relative-Age Effect and Managerial Success

SSRN Electronic Journal ◽

10.2139/ssrn.1154728 ◽

2008 ◽

Author(s):

Qianqian Du ◽

Huasheng Gao ◽

Maurice D. Levi

Keyword(s):

Age Effect ◽

Relative Age ◽

Managerial Success ◽

Relative Age Effect

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Differences on Motor Competence in 4-Year-Old Boys and Girls Regarding the Quarter of Birth: Is There a Relative Age Effect?

Children ◽

10.3390/children8020141 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 141

Author(s):

Rubén Navarro-Patón ◽

Víctor Arufe-Giráldez ◽

Alberto Sanmiguel-Rodríguez ◽

Marcos Mecías-Calvo

Keyword(s):

Age Effect ◽

Manual Dexterity ◽

Motor Competence ◽

Relative Age ◽

Relative Age Effect ◽

Two Factors ◽

Movement Assessment ◽

Gender Factor ◽

Main Effects ◽

Total Test

The aim of this study was to evaluate the differences on motor competence between boys and girls aged 4 years old and investigate the existence of Relative Age Effect on their motor competence. In total, 132 preschool children were evaluated, of whom 60 (45.50%) were girls and 72 (54.5%) were boys. The distribution of the participants was from quarter 1 [n = 28 (21.2%)], quarter 2 [n = 52 (39.4%)], quarter 3 [n = 24 (18.2%)], and quarter 4 [(n = 28 (21.2%)], respectively. The Movement Assessment Battery for Children-2 (MABC-2) was used to collect the data. The data show the main effects on quarter of birth factor in manual dexterity (MD; p < 0.001), in aiming and catching (A&C; p < 0.001), in balance (Bal; p < 0.001) and in total test score (TTS; p < 0.001). There are also statistical differences on gender factor in MD (p < 0.001) and in TTS (p = 0.031). A significant effect was also found in the interaction between two factors (gender and quarter of birth) in MD (p < 0.001), A&C (p < 0.001), and Bal (p < 0.001). There are differences in all the variables studied according to the quarter of birth and only in manual dexterity and in the total score if compared according to gender (the scores are higher in girls).

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Relative Age Effect on Motor Competence in Children Aged 4–5 Years

Children ◽

10.3390/children8020115 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 115

Author(s):

Rubén Navarro-Patón ◽

Marcos Mecías-Calvo ◽

José Eugenio Rodríguez Fernández ◽

Víctor Arufe-Giráldez

Keyword(s):

Preschool Children ◽

Test Score ◽

Age Effect ◽

Manual Dexterity ◽

Motor Competence ◽

Relative Age ◽

Relative Age Effect ◽

Movement Assessment ◽

Total Test ◽

Total Test Score

The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether a Relative Age Effect (RAE) exists in motor competence of preschool children. The hypothesis was that motor competence, assessed by the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-2 (MABC-2), would be higher in preschool children born in the first quarter of the year compared to those who were born in the last quarter of the same year. A total of 360 preschool children were evaluated of whom 208 (57.8%) were boys and 152 (42.8%) were girls, with a mean age of 4.52 years old (± 0.50). The distribution of the participants was 172 children aged 4 years old and 188 aged 5 years old. The data showed a main effect on the age factor in the total score of aiming and catching (p < 0.001) and in the total test score (p < 0.001), in the quarter of birth factor in all the dimensions studied (i.e., total score of manual dexterity (p < 0.001); total score of aiming and catching (p = 0.001); total score of balance (p < 0.001); total test score (p < 0.001)) and in the interaction between both factors (i.e., total score of manual dexterity (p = 0.005); total score of aiming and catching (p = 0.002); total score of balance (p < 0.001); total test score (p < 0.001)). Age and quarter of birth produce a RAE in 4 and 5-year-old preschool children’s motor competence.

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Relative age effect in physical attributes and motor fitness at different birth-month quartile

Journal of Fundamental and Applied Sciences ◽

10.4314/jfas.v9i2s.34 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 9 (2S) ◽

pp. 521 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

S.M. Mat-Rasid ◽

M.R. Abdullah ◽

H Juahir ◽

R.M. Musa ◽

A.B.H.M. Maliki ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Age Effect ◽

Relative Age ◽

Relative Age Effect ◽

Motor Fitness ◽

Birth Month ◽

Physical Attributes

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The Influence of Relative Age Effects on the Cardiorespiratory Fitness Levels of Children Age 9 to 10 and 11 to 12 Years of Age

Pediatric Exercise Science ◽

10.1123/pes.24.1.72 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 24 (1) ◽

pp. 72-83 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Simon J. Roberts ◽

Lynne M. Boddy ◽

Stuart J. Fairclough ◽

Gareth Stratton

Keyword(s):

Cardiorespiratory Fitness ◽

Age Groups ◽

Age Effect ◽

Age Effects ◽

Fitness Testing ◽

Public Health Perspective ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Relative Age ◽

Relative Age Effect ◽

First Time

The aims of this study were firstly to examine whether there was an observed relative age effect in the cardiorespiratory fitness scores of 9-10 and 11-12 year old children, and secondly whether any observed effect was maintained after controlling for somatic maturity. Cardiorespiratory fitness data from 11,404 children aged 9-10 years and 3,911 children aged 11-12 years were obtained from a large cross-sectional field-based fitness testing program. A one-way ANOVA revealed a statistically significant relative age effect (p < .01) existed in the 20mSRT scores across all the age groups. Furthermore, ANCOVA analyses identified a statistically significant relative age effect was maintained after controlling for somatic maturation (p < .05). From a public health perspective these results confirm the existence of relative age effects for the first time and consequently may hold implications for relatively younger children in the accurate assessment of their cardiorespiratory fitness scores.

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