Urban area disadvantage and physical activity: a multilevel study in Melbourne, Australia

Abstract

Objective: To estimate variation between small areas in the levels of walking, cycling, jogging, and swimming and overall physical activity and the importance of area level socioeconomic disadvantage in predicting physical activity participation. Methods: All census collector districts (CCDs) in the 20 innermost local government areas in metropolitan Melbourne, Australia, were identified and ranked by the percentage of low income households (,$400/ week) living in the CCD. Fifty CCDs were randomly selected from the least, middle, and most disadvantaged septiles of the ranked CCDs and 2349 residents (58.7% participation rate) participated in a cross sectional postal survey about physical activity. Multilevel logistic regression (adjusted for extrabinomial variation) was used to estimate area level variation in walking, cycling, jogging, and swimming and in overall physical activity participation, and the importance of area level socioeconomic disadvantage in predicting physical activity participation. Results: There were significant variations between CCDs in all activities and in overall physical participation in age and sex adjusted models; however, after adjustment for individual SES (income, occupation, education) and area level socioeconomic disadvantage, significant differences remained only for walking (p = 0.004), cycling (p = 0.003), and swimming (p = 0.024). Living in the most socioeconomically disadvantaged areas was associated with a decreased likelihood of jogging and of having overall physical activity levels that were sufficiently active for health; these effects remained after adjustment for individual socioeconomic status (sufficiently active: OR 0.70, 95% CI 0.55 to 0.90 and jogging: OR = 0.69, 95% CI 0.51 to 0.94). Conclusion: These research findings support the need to focus on improving local environments to increase physical activity participation.

Neighborhood disadvantage, individual‐level socioeconomic position, and self‐reported chronic arthritis: A cross‐sectional multilevel study

“…We therefore need to consider the likely bias attributable to nonresponse and how this might affect this study's inferences to the wider population. Previous studies show that persons from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds (38) and residents of more deprived neighborhoods (39) are the least likely to respond to or participate in survey research. As a result, population-based samples typically underrepresent the most disadvantaged and overrepresent the advantaged, the likely consequence of which is a socioeconomically truncated sample resulting in an underestimation of the magnitude of socioeconomic variability in self-reported arthritis.…”

Adherence to a physical activity intervention among older adults in a post-transitional middle income country: A quantitative and qualitative analysis

“…Several contextual variables were also directly associated with adherence, and it is clear that safe neighborhoods, proximity to parks and social institutions and lower levels of deprivation seem to be particularly important in older adults [29][30][31][32]. However, enabling changes to environmental factors will pose great challenges that require the commitment of political and social actors.…”

Do Relationships Between Environmental Attributes and Recreational Walking Vary According to Area-Level Socioeconomic Status?

“…1,2 Such disparities are particularly apparent for recreational physical activity. A study in the Netherlands found that residents of low SES neighborhoods had a higher likelihood of not participating in recreational physical activity, in comparison to those of high SES areas.…”