The Role of Knowledge and Understanding in Shaping Motivation, Self-Confidence, and Physical Competence in 8–12-Year-Old Students in Physical Education

Physical Literacy (PL) assumes mutual reinforcement between its cognitive, affective, and physical domains. However, the role of the cognitive domain within this framework remains insufficiently explored. The aim of this study was to determine the extent to which the level of Knowledge and Understanding is related to Physical Competence, Motivation and Confidence, and Daily Behaviour in children aged 8–12 years. The study also examined whether grade group moderates these relationships. The Canadian Assessment of PL (CAPL-2) tool was administered to a sample of 2030 students from Poland. No consistent or practically meaningful correlations were observed between Knowledge and Understanding and Daily Behaviour across grade groups. Significant, although generally weak, associations were found between Knowledge and Understanding and both Motivation and Confidence and Physical Competence, with the Understanding subdomain showing stronger relationships. Moderation analysis indicated that the association between ‘Knowledge’ and Physical Competence decreased in older grade groups, while no consistent interaction effects were observed for ‘Understanding’. These findings suggest that, within the CAPL-2 operationalisation, the ‘Understanding’ subdomain showed relatively stronger (although still weak) associations; however, these differences were observed within generally weak relationships and should be interpreted cautiously.