Reliability and Interrelationships of Center of Pressure Sway Variables During the Stipulated Tempo Step in School Children

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Margaret

This study examines the reliability of center of pressure (COP) sway variables during specified tempo steps and the relationships among these variables in school children. Fifty children aged 6–12 years performed two 40-second trials at 40, 60, 90, and 120 bpm using a dynamic/static balance measurement system. Intraclass correlation coefficients assessed reliability and Pearson correlations assessed interrelationships across tempos. ICCs were mostly above 0.7 except for SD-Y at 40 bpm. Total path length and peripheral area showed strong correlations overall, with tempo-specific exceptions, while SD-X correlated strongly across tempos and SD-Y mainly between 90 and 120 bpm.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages7

Reading Time18 min

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Abstract

Keywords

1. Introduction

Reliability and Interrelationships of Center of Pressure Sway Variables During the Stipulated Tempo Step in School Children Hiroki Aoki1. *, Shin-ichi Demura2, Yoshinori Nagasawa3, Ryouichi Nagayama4 & Sakiko Ukita5 1National Institute of Technology, Fukui College, Fukui, Japan 2Kanazawa University, Ishikawa, Japan 3Kyoto Pharmaceutical University, Kyoto, Japan 4Hokuriku Gakuin University, Ishikawa, Japan 5Kanto Gakuin University, Kanagawa, Japan *Correspondence: National Institute of Technology, Fukui College, Geshi, Sabae, Fukui 916-8507, Japan. Tel: 81-778-62-1111. E-mail: [aoki@fukui-nct.ac.jp](aoki@fukui-nct.ac.jp) Received: October 26, 2025 doi:10.5430/wje.v16n1p1 Accepted: November 27, 2025 Online Published: February 27, 2026 URL: [https://doi.org/10.5430/wje.v16n1p1](https://doi.org/10.5430/wje.v16n1p1) Abstract This study examines the reliability of the center of pressure (COP) sway variables during specified tempo steps and explores the relationships among these variables in school children. The study included 50 school children (25 boys and 25 girls) aged 6–12 years. Participants performed two 40-second trials at tempos of 40 bpm, 60 bpm, 90 bpm, and 120 bpm using a dynamic/static balance measuring system (From TAKEI SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS CO., LTD.) . Total path length, peripheral area, standard deviation X, and standard deviation Y were used as evaluation variables. Reliability of the COP sway variables was assessed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), and their interrelationships were analyzed using Pearson's correlation coefficient. ICCs exceeded 0.7 for all variables, except for the standard deviation Y at 40 bpm. Total path length and peripheral area were highly correlated, except at 40 bpm and 120 bpm. Standard deviation X showed high correlation across all tempos, while standard deviation Y showed high correlations only between 90 bpm and 120 bpm. The remaining variables showed moderate correlations across tempos. In contrast, within each tempo, correlations were high between total path length and peripheral area, between peripheral area and standard deviation Y across all tempos, between total path length and standard deviation X in 60 bpm, and between total path length and standard deviation Y at 120 bpm. The other variables exhibited moderate correlations. In conclusion, the reliability of the COP sway variables during the stipulated tempo step in the school children was relatively high regardless of a tempo difference. The COP sway variables have high relations among three tempos of 40 bpm, 60 bpm, and 120 bpm except for a few variables, and regardless of the tempo difference, the relation between total path length and peripheral area, and between peripheral area and standard deviation Y was high. Keywords: school children, stipulated tempo, step 1. Introduction Center of pressure (COP) sway has long been used to evaluate human’s postural control ability (Imaoka et al., 1997; Baloh et al., 1998; Demura et al., 2001; Kitabayashi et al., 2003; Fujimoto et al., 2010) . The COP sway during static standing posture is the result of postural reflexes that integrate various sensory information including somatosensory and visual information, and regulate them with appropriate muscle output (Aoki et al., 2024) . Until now, the COPsway during static standing has been examined in both sexes and between people of a wide age range. Many studies have reported gender- and age-related differences in sway variables (Masani et al., 2007; Lin et al., 2008; Kitabayashi et al., 2018) . Postural control plays a role in basic dynamic movements, such as standing up and walking; hence, in recent years, it has also been examined during dynamic movements in addition to the static standing position (Ohnishi et al., 2010; Published by Sciedu Press 1 ISSN 1925-0746 E-ISSN 1925-0754 Aoki et al., 2012; Yamaji et al., 2015) . Ohnishi et al. (2010) measured the COP sway of the supporting leg

FAQs

What was the study aim regarding COP sway during tempo steps?

The study evaluated the reliability of COP sway variables during specified tempo steps and explored how these variables relate to each other in school children.

How many children participated, and what tempo conditions were tested?

Fifty school children aged 6–12 years participated. They performed two 40-second trials at 40, 60, 90, and 120 bpm.

Which COP sway variables showed the strongest overall reliability and correlation patterns?

Reliability was generally high with ICCs exceeding 0.7 for most variables, except SD-Y at 40 bpm. Total path length and peripheral area were highly correlated overall, and SD-X showed high correlations across tempos, while SD-Y correlations were strongest between 90 and 120 bpm.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Margaret