Gender Differences and Previous Experience in Overhand Throw

Studies clearly indicate that gender differences can be found in ball velocity scores, with an advantage for boys, and that velocity scores increase with age (Cohen, Goodway, & Lidor, 2012; Garcia & Garcia, 2002; Goodway & Lorson, 2008). However, the relationships between product measures (ball velocity scores) and process measures (the form of the throw) are still not clearly understood. This study examined the relationship between gender differences and previous experience of the overhand throw for force, in a naturalistic physical-education setting.

Ninety-seven third-grade students (39 girls, 58 boys) with a mean age of 105.4 months (SD = 4.76) participated in this study. All the students were asked to answer two questions associated with their previous experience with throwing. The data were recorded and were later analyzed related to the students` throwing experience.

Prior to the intervention, significant gender differences existed at the pretest, with boys having greater mean recorded velocities than girls. Both genders improved significantly in ball velocity from pretest to posttest. However, the boys continued to significantly outperform the girls throughout the intervention at the posttest and retention test. Both genders maintained their performance gains from the posttest to the retention test. In addition, more boys than girls replied `yes` on both of the questions related to previous throwing experience.

It might be that the intervention was not powerful enough for the girls to catch up with the boys, as the differences between them from the start were too big to overcome and therefore enable the girls to improve performances in such a short period of time. Although gender was a strong predictor for the differences, it is not clear what it is about `gender` that accounts for these differences. Additional research should examine this instructional issue.