Psychological Aspects of Developmental Coordination Disorder: Can We Establish Causality?

Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) is a highly prevalent, chronic disability, which significantly impacts a child’s ability to perform everyday motor-based tasks. Although first and foremost a disorder involving coordinated movement, DCD also is associated with a range of psychological problems. In this article, we review evidence documenting the social and emotional problems experienced by children with DCD. We then examine potential causal explanations, including recent evidence suggesting that DCD is a primary stressor that “triggers” exposure to a complex set of secondary stressors, which collectively lead to psychological distress. Within this context, we consider how various personal and environmental factors might mediate or interrupt the trajectory of poor psychological outcomes in DCD. We identify limitations in the current evidence and suggest directions for future research, including the proposition that evidence-based interventions be leveraged as a means of establishing causal pathways while simultaneously providing much needed support to children with DCD.