Low-income neighborhood barriers and resources for adolescents’ physical activity

Perceptions of Neighborhood Park Quality: Associations with Physical Activity and Body Mass Index

“…Although previous studies found that physical activity and health were related to maintenance [23,36,50], attractiveness [16,37,72,83], safety [20,33,36], and availability of facilities [17,50], no significant relationships were found for these aspects of park quality in the present study. For example, the condition of parks and facilities was important for encouraging facility use, and quality of facilities has been associated with more physical activity [36,50].…”

“…As more than 20 % of the respondents in this study engage in no physical activity and more than 60 % were either overweight or obese, there is a need to increase physical activity participation among residents which can subsequently improve health. Previous research indicates the importance of park characteristics in promoting physical activity [14,25], but only limited studies have examined perceptions of park quality aspects among the general population [32,36]. The present study presented a new park quality scale adapted from previous research with demonstrated test-retest and internal reliability.…”

“…For example, the condition of parks and facilities was important for encouraging facility use, and quality of facilities has been associated with more physical activity [36,50]. Furthermore, enjoyable scenery, site beauty, and attractiveness of parks were related to greater engagement in park-based physical activity [16,37,72,83].…”

“…Specifically, perceived safety [33], perceived availability of facilities [25,34], perceived maintenance and condition of facilities [35,36], perceived attractiveness [16,37], and perceived use [32,38] are related to park use or physical activity. For example, Ries et al [32] found that greater perceived park quality pertaining to the amenities available, maintenance, aesthetics, and safety was associated with more than two times greater odds of using parks, but no association was found between park quality and physical activity.…”

“…For example, Ries et al [32] found that greater perceived park quality pertaining to the amenities available, maintenance, aesthetics, and safety was associated with more than two times greater odds of using parks, but no association was found between park quality and physical activity. In another self-reported study, availability and quality of equipment and safety were found to be related to more vigorous physical activity [36]. Poor maintenance, litter, uncleanliness of bathrooms, and vandalism were found to be inversely related to park use [35], and attractiveness of parks was positively associated with park-based physical activity [16,37].…”