Developmental gender differences for overhand throwing in Aboriginal Australian children.

In a review of 46 meta-analyses of gender differences, overhand throwing had the largest gender difference favoring boys (ES > 3.0). Expectations for gender-specific performances may be less pronounced in female Australian Aborigines, because historical accounts state they threw for defense and hunting. Overhand throwing velocities and kinematics were recorded in 30 female and male Aboriginal Australian children 6-10 years old. Results indicated the Aboriginal girls and boys were more similar in horizontal ball velocities than U.S. girls and boys. Throwing kinematics between girls and boys were also more similar in Australian Aborigines than U.S. children. Aboriginal girls threw with greater velocities than U.S., German, Japanese, and Thai girls, while the boys were similar across cultures.