A methodology to understand how environments support health

Abstract

This paper presents a research methodology that takes an in-depth and qualitative approach to explore the role that the built environment plays in supporting health and well-being as part of everyday living. The focus is on how the built environment facilitates physical activity, social interaction, and access to fresh and nutritious foods – all important in reducing risk factors for chronic illness. The paper provides a detailed description of the research methodology currently being used in an Australian study of four diverse residential sites. The methods emphasise collecting in-depth and qualitative data. Initially, this was by way of a detailed instrument devised for the project – the healthy neighbourhood audit – which subsequently informed question schedules for interviews and focus groups. The paper concludes by illustrating how data collected using the audit enhances an in-depth understanding of the ways in which the built environment can support healthy activities in everyday life.

Towards a nuanced understanding of health‐supportive place using composite research methods

“…The audit process has been detailed elsewhere (Thompson & Mitchell, ). It included development of our Healthy Neighbourhood Audit instrument (available for free download at https://cityfutures.be.unsw.edu.au/research/city-well-being/city-well-being-resources/healthy-built-environments-audit-instrument-and-interview-questions/).…”

“…In some of our research on healthy built environments, we have identified a range of related difficulties: measuring the networked and intricate, rather than singular and linear, relationships that exist between people and the places in which they live; “isolating” those component relationships that might have a direct impact on individuals’ health and behaviour; and meeting the differing “measures” of trustworthiness (and the attendant acceptance of findings) adopted by various health, built environment, and social science professionals involved (Thompson & Mitchell, ). We established that most healthy built environment research is still designed with reference to the approaches adopted in the epidemiological studies that identified the rise of the current chronic illnesses in the first place—a targeted quantitative focus on individual components based on essentially linear cause and effect relationships.…”

“…The overarching aim of the study was to understand how the selected neighbourhoods support physical and mental health. Readers interested in specific details can refer to our comprehensive reports here: https://cityfutures.be.unsw.edu.au/research/projects/planning-and-building-healthy-communities-a-multidisciplinary-study-of-the-relationship-between-the-built-environment-and-human-health/ and published articles such as those by Thompson and Mitchell () and Thompson et al . ().…”

Relieving fuel poverty in Wales with external wall insulation

“…In addition to poor thermal performance, the occupants that live in these dwellings are at increased risk of having to live in fuel poverty, as well as suffering from poor health, which could lead to an increased demand on the National Health Service (NHS) (Davidson et al, 2011;Howarth, 2010;Nicol et al, 2010;Thompson and Mitchell, 2015).…”

Editorial

“…The first, by Thompson and Mitchell (2015), sets out a research methodology currently being used in Australia that seeks to collate in-depth quantitative and qualitative data to provide a more nuanced understanding of how built environments may support more healthy lifestyles. This is important work as it attempts to bridge the 'philosophical divide' between health and built environment scholarship and by providing evidence that is acceptable in both fields.…”