Construct validity of age at predicted adult height and BAUS skeletal age to assess biological maturity in academy soccer

Ludwig Ruf; Sean Cumming; Sascha Härtel; Anne Hecksteden; Barry Drust; Tim Meyer

doi:10.1080/03014460.2021.1913224

Construct validity of age at predicted adult height and BAUS skeletal age to assess biological maturity in academy soccer

Ludwig Ruf^*, Sean Cumming, Sascha Härtel, Anne Hecksteden, Barry Drust, Tim Meyer

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Background: The assessment of biological maturity status plays an important role in talent identification and development programs.

Aim: To compare age at predicted adult height and BAUS skeletal age as indicators of biological maturity status in youth soccer players using a construct-validity approach.

Subjects and methods: Participants were 114 players from the U12 to U17 age groups of a professional youth soccer academy. Maturity status was determined via percentage of predicted adult height based upon the Khamis-Roche method (somatic maturity) and assessed via the SonicBone BAUS^TM system (skeletal maturity). Convergent and known-groups validity were evaluated between maturity assessment methods and by comparing maturity-related selection biases across age groups.

Results: Although maturity status indicators were largely interrelated (r =.94, 95%CL 0.91–0.96), concordance (κ = 0.31 to 0.39) and Spearman’s rank-order correlations (ρ = 0.45–0.52) of classification methods were moderate. A selection bias towards early maturing players emerged in the U14 age group which remained relatively consistent through to the U17 age group.

Conclusions: Results confirm the construct-validity of both methods to assess biological maturity status although further validation relative to established indicators of biological maturity is needed. Furthermore, caution is also warranted when interpreting maturity status classification methods interchangeably given the poor concordance between classification methods.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	101-109
Number of pages	9
Journal	Annals of Human Biology
Volume	48
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1080/03014460.2021.1913224
Publication status	Published - 7 Jun 2021

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
No funding was provided for completion of this manuscript. Ludwig Ruf is supported by the “Science and Health in Soccer” scholarship funded by the Saarland University (GradUS program).

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Keywords

adolescence
Maturation
percentage adult height
skeletal age
validation

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Epidemiology
Physiology
Ageing
Genetics
Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1080/03014460.2021.1913224

Cite this

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title = "Construct validity of age at predicted adult height and BAUS skeletal age to assess biological maturity in academy soccer",

abstract = "Background: The assessment of biological maturity status plays an important role in talent identification and development programs. Aim: To compare age at predicted adult height and BAUS skeletal age as indicators of biological maturity status in youth soccer players using a construct-validity approach. Subjects and methods: Participants were 114 players from the U12 to U17 age groups of a professional youth soccer academy. Maturity status was determined via percentage of predicted adult height based upon the Khamis-Roche method (somatic maturity) and assessed via the SonicBone BAUSTM system (skeletal maturity). Convergent and known-groups validity were evaluated between maturity assessment methods and by comparing maturity-related selection biases across age groups. Results: Although maturity status indicators were largely interrelated (r =.94, 95%CL 0.91–0.96), concordance (κ = 0.31 to 0.39) and Spearman{\textquoteright}s rank-order correlations (ρ = 0.45–0.52) of classification methods were moderate. A selection bias towards early maturing players emerged in the U14 age group which remained relatively consistent through to the U17 age group. Conclusions: Results confirm the construct-validity of both methods to assess biological maturity status although further validation relative to established indicators of biological maturity is needed. Furthermore, caution is also warranted when interpreting maturity status classification methods interchangeably given the poor concordance between classification methods.",

keywords = "adolescence, Maturation, percentage adult height, skeletal age, validation",

author = "Ludwig Ruf and Sean Cumming and Sascha H{\"a}rtel and Anne Hecksteden and Barry Drust and Tim Meyer",

note = "Funding Information: No funding was provided for completion of this manuscript. Ludwig Ruf is supported by the “Science and Health in Soccer” scholarship funded by the Saarland University (GradUS program). Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.",

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AU - Ruf, Ludwig

AU - Cumming, Sean

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AU - Hecksteden, Anne

AU - Drust, Barry

AU - Meyer, Tim

N1 - Funding Information: No funding was provided for completion of this manuscript. Ludwig Ruf is supported by the “Science and Health in Soccer” scholarship funded by the Saarland University (GradUS program). Publisher Copyright: © 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

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N2 - Background: The assessment of biological maturity status plays an important role in talent identification and development programs. Aim: To compare age at predicted adult height and BAUS skeletal age as indicators of biological maturity status in youth soccer players using a construct-validity approach. Subjects and methods: Participants were 114 players from the U12 to U17 age groups of a professional youth soccer academy. Maturity status was determined via percentage of predicted adult height based upon the Khamis-Roche method (somatic maturity) and assessed via the SonicBone BAUSTM system (skeletal maturity). Convergent and known-groups validity were evaluated between maturity assessment methods and by comparing maturity-related selection biases across age groups. Results: Although maturity status indicators were largely interrelated (r =.94, 95%CL 0.91–0.96), concordance (κ = 0.31 to 0.39) and Spearman’s rank-order correlations (ρ = 0.45–0.52) of classification methods were moderate. A selection bias towards early maturing players emerged in the U14 age group which remained relatively consistent through to the U17 age group. Conclusions: Results confirm the construct-validity of both methods to assess biological maturity status although further validation relative to established indicators of biological maturity is needed. Furthermore, caution is also warranted when interpreting maturity status classification methods interchangeably given the poor concordance between classification methods.

AB - Background: The assessment of biological maturity status plays an important role in talent identification and development programs. Aim: To compare age at predicted adult height and BAUS skeletal age as indicators of biological maturity status in youth soccer players using a construct-validity approach. Subjects and methods: Participants were 114 players from the U12 to U17 age groups of a professional youth soccer academy. Maturity status was determined via percentage of predicted adult height based upon the Khamis-Roche method (somatic maturity) and assessed via the SonicBone BAUSTM system (skeletal maturity). Convergent and known-groups validity were evaluated between maturity assessment methods and by comparing maturity-related selection biases across age groups. Results: Although maturity status indicators were largely interrelated (r =.94, 95%CL 0.91–0.96), concordance (κ = 0.31 to 0.39) and Spearman’s rank-order correlations (ρ = 0.45–0.52) of classification methods were moderate. A selection bias towards early maturing players emerged in the U14 age group which remained relatively consistent through to the U17 age group. Conclusions: Results confirm the construct-validity of both methods to assess biological maturity status although further validation relative to established indicators of biological maturity is needed. Furthermore, caution is also warranted when interpreting maturity status classification methods interchangeably given the poor concordance between classification methods.

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Construct validity of age at predicted adult height and BAUS skeletal age to assess biological maturity in academy soccer

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

UN SDGs

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