Park Use and Park-Based Physical Activity in Low-Income Neighborhoods.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Cohen DA
PROVIDER: S-EPMC7494055 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jun
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Publications
Park Use and Park-Based Physical Activity in Low-Income Neighborhoods.
Cohen Deborah A DA Han Bing B Park Sujeong S Williamson Stephanie S Derose Kathryn P KP
Journal of aging and physical activity 20181121 3
Routine physical activity is important for everyone, and most urban areas have an infrastructure of neighborhood parks that are intended to serve as a setting for recreation and leisure. However, parks are not used proportionally by all age groups, genders, and socioeconomic groups. This paper explores factors associated with park use by different age and gender groups in low-income neighborhoods in Los Angeles, CA. We found that women's visits to parks generally centered around children, wherea ...[more]
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Project description:INTRODUCTION:Crime and safety are often cited as potential hurdles to park use and park-based physical activity. Using comprehensive data sources including both objective and subjective measurements at the park level and the individual level, this study aimed to assess the association between crime rates and use of local parks in low-income urban neighborhoods. METHODS:The authors observed 48 parks and conducted local resident surveys in low-income neighborhoods in Los Angeles during a 2-year study period (2013-2015). Crime data were geocoded within a 1-mile radius of parks' addresses and longitudinal models were fitted to estimate the association between crime rates and park use outcomes in 2017. RESULTS:One gun-related violent crime per 10,000 people during the 6-month period prior to data collection was associated with an average of 13.5%-15.8% reduction in observed park use and park-based moderate to vigorous physical activity (p<0.05) in the 6-month observation period. The relationship was significant in seniors (33%-40% reduction) and adults (13%-18%), but insignificant for teenagers (2%-4%) and children (10%-12%). Homicide rates were also significantly related to lower self-reported park use (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS:Gun-related violent crimes have relatively long-term negative associations with population health by reducing utilization of outdoor park space. There can be additional population health benefits from controlling and reducing gun-related violent crimes beyond immediate impacts on public safety and mortality.
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Project description:Parks may provide opportunities for people to increase their physical activity and improve health. Yet, parks are generally less plentiful and underutilized in low-income urban neighborhoods compared with more advantaged neighborhoods. Renovations within and around parks may improve park utilization but the empirical evidence supporting this relationship is scarce. This study assessed the impact of greenspace, housing, and commercial investments on street characteristics (walkability, amenities, incivilities/poor esthetics) and park use by examining park use over time in two low-income neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, PA (n = 17 parks), before and after neighborhood-based renovations that were primarily centered in one neighborhood. We used systematic observation of parks, park use, and street blocks surrounding parks to examine the impact of neighborhood changes on park use. We used difference-in-differences to test whether park use and street characteristics surrounding the parks improved more in the intervention neighborhood than in the comparison neighborhood. We also used zero-inflated negative binomial regression with interactions by time to test whether changes in street characteristics were associated with changes in park use over time. We found that improved walkability, incivilities, and esthetics surrounding parks in socioeconomically disadvantaged neighborhoods were associated with greater park use and may help increase visits to underutilized parks.
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Project description:IntroductionPhysical inactivity is more prevalent among women than men and is related to poor health outcomes. Neighborhood parks constitute an important resource for physical activity (PA), however, previous studies of park users have found fewer women being physically active.MethodsWe conducted a hierarchical mixed-effect regression analysis of the independent associations between gender and park use and PA among a population-based sample in high-poverty neighborhoods in Los Angeles. Data sources included 1) structured interviews with adults (≥18 years of age) in randomly selected households within 1 mile of study parks (n = 2,973), 2) systematic observations of study parks (n = 48), and 3) neighborhood characteristics from the 2010 U.S. Census.ResultsAfter controlling for race/ethnicity, education, body mass index of 30 kg/m2 or greater, health status, proximity to park, having children under the age of 18, perceived park safety, estimated screen time, and park- and neighborhood-level variables, statistically significant differences were found between women and men on all outcomes. Compared with men, women reported fewer park visits in the past week (-0.28 times/week; p < .001) and shorter durations of a typical park visit (-11.11 min/visit; p < .001). Women were also less likely than men to report levels of PA that meet national guidelines (≥150 minutes of moderate to vigorous PA per week; risk difference = -0.06; p < .01) or to exercise in the park (risk difference = -0.13; p < .001) or elsewhere (risk difference = -0.13; p < .001).ConclusionsWomen living in high-poverty neighborhoods use parks less for PA than men. Improved park-level design, programming, and other policy interventions may be needed to mitigate disparities in park use and PA for all.
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Project description:The control of drug activity currently favors supply-side policies: drug suppliers in the U.S. face a higher arrest rate and longer sentences than demanders. We construct a simple model of drug activity with search and entry frictions in labor and drug markets. Our calibration analysis suggests a strong "dealer replacement effect." As a result, given a variety of community objectives, it is beneficial to lower supplier arrests and raise the demand arrest rate from current values. A 10% shift from supply-side to demand-side arrests can reduce the population of potential drug dealers by 22-25,000 and raise aggregate local income by $380-400 million, at 2002 prices. (JEL Classification: D60, J60, K42, H70).
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Project description:BackgroundModifying the built environment by improving parks is potentially a sustainable way to increase population level physical activity. Despite considerable investment in parks and park renovations, few natural experiments on the impact of improving amenities on park use and park-based physical activity have been conducted. REVAMP is a natural experiment that aims to examine whether park improvement increases overall park usage, park-based physical activity and active travel to and from the park in the intervention compared with the control park over a two-year period; and to identify which specific aspects of the park refurbishment attracts park visitors and encourages park users to be more active. This paper describes the methods of the REVAMP study.MethodsThe intervention park is a large regional park (329 hectares) located in a low socio-economic status (SES) area in the north-eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Australia. The control park is a regional park (120 hectares) located in a high SES area in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne. Multiple methodologies to evaluate the impact of the park renovation are being employed including: cross-sectional surveys of local residents living near the two parks, direct observations of park users, intercept surveys with park users, and electronic monitoring of path usage and car traffic within the parks. Baseline measures were conducted in April-May 2013 (T1), and an innovative play space suitable for children of all ages and abilities was installed at the intervention park between September 2013 and February 2014. Follow-up measures will be repeated in April-May 2014 (T2) and April-May 2015 (T3). All methodologies will be completed at both the intervention and control parks at all three time-points, with the exception of the cross-sectional survey of local residents which will only be conducted at T1 and T3.ConclusionThis research will inform future park developments, and will contribute to creating an evidence base of the impact of park refurbishment, and the development of natural experiment methodology.Trial registrationCurrent controlled trial ISRCTN50745547, registration date 11.1.2014.
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Project description:This longitudinal study described park usage and assessed the contribution of parks to moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among adolescent girls. High school girls from California (n = 131) and Minnesota (n = 134) wore a global positioning system (GPS) monitor and accelerometer for 6 consecutive days at two time points, one year apart. Park visits were classified by linking the GPS, accelerometer, and park and built environment data around home and school locations into a geographic information system. At baseline, 20% of girls visited a park at least once (mean 0.1 times/day), which was similar one year later (19%, mean 0.1 times/day). Girls lived a mean Euclidean distance of 0.2 miles to the nearest park at both times. Among all park visits, the mean Euclidean distance of the park visited was 4.1 (baseline) and 3.9 miles (follow-up). The average duration of park visits was higher at baseline (63.9 minutes) compared to follow-up (38.4 minutes). On days when a park was visited, MVPA was higher than on days when a park was not visited. On average, 1.9% (baseline) and 2.8% (follow-up) of MVPA occurred in parks. In this study, parks were an under-used resource for adolescent girls, particularly for MVPA.
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