Do Neighborhoods Make People Active, or Do People Make Active Neighborhoods? Evidence from a Planned Community in Austin, Texas

Whether patterns of physical activity in different communities can be attributed to the built environment or instead reflect self-selection is not well understood. This article reports on a study undertaken to examine neighborhood preferences and behavior-specific physical activity among residents who moved to a new urbanist-designed community. The authors used data from a 2009 survey (n = 424) that was designed and administered to evaluate neighborhood preferences and behavior-specific physical activity before and after residents moved. Data were grouped and stratified by pre-move physical activity levels into low-, middle-, and high-activity groups. The authors used Student’s paired sample t test and Wilcoxon signed-rank test to compare pre- and post-move scores and used an analysis of variance to compare mean changes as a function of pre-move physical activity level. After moving, the high-activity group continued to be significantly more active than the middle- and low-activity groups (P < .001). However, the authors report the biggest increase in pre- to post-move total physical activity in the low-activity group (mean increase, 176.3 min/wk) compared with the middle- (mean increase, 69.5 min/wk) and high-activity groups (mean decrease, 67.9 min/wk). All 3 groups had significant increases in walking inside the neighborhood for recreation. The preferred neighborhood features with the most significant pre- to post-move change scores were those associated with greater walkability. This study supports the role the environment plays in physical activity. These data suggest that moving to an activity-friendly neighborhood can positively affect physical activity levels, particularly among residents who had previously been least active.

• Record URL:
  • https://doi.org/10.5888/pcd10.120119
• Record URL:
  • http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23786909
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/15451151
• Authors:
  • Calise, Tamara Vehige
  • Heeren, Timothy
  • DeJong, William
  • Dumith, Samuel C
  • Kohl, Harold W
• Publication Date: 2013

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: n.p.
• Serial:
  • Preventing Chronic Disease
  • Volume: 10
  • Publisher: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
  • ISSN: 1545-1151
  • Serial URL: http://www.cdc.gov/pcd/index.htm

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Behavior; Communities; Neighborhoods; Physical fitness; Residential areas; Residential location; Residents; Travel behavior; Urban design; Walkability; Walking
• Subject Areas: Highways; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Safety and Human Factors; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01496514
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Oct 25 2013 11:24AM