TAKIDS

The test set TAKIDS Talent Assessment Sport Kids assesses ability dimensions that enable children’s potential sporting success to be predicted.

In just 22 minutes the TAKIDS test set assesses three aspects of sport-related ability (resilience, auditory and visual reaction ability and memory) in children between the ages of 7 and 10. Whether the junior talent matches the defined ideal range can be calculated and displayed.

When testing children, two aspects of psychological tests must be given special consideration. The tests must be designed to be reasonable for the child. This means that the tests should use child-friendly material and that unnecessary exhaustion through over-lengthy testing should be avoided. The tests in this test set have been specially designed to meet these requirements of sports psychology testing. In addition, an ideal profile has been drawn up as an aid to interpretation; this provides a quick and easy means of predicting and comparing the child’s sporting ability.

The ability dimensions tested were selected on the basis of psychological considerations and validated in a study at Vienna University. The dimensions of reaction ability, memory and reactive stress tolerance were found to be of great practical relevance. The test set is based on a test battery that for many years was used in the WoGoS project for basic ability assessment of young athletes. The test material and test length have been adapted to take account of the fact that children are the specific target group.