Does residential density increase walking and other physical activity?

Ann Forsyth, J. Michael Oakes, Kathryn H. Schmitz, Mary Hearst

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

283 Scopus citations

Abstract

Many agree that increasing physical activity will improve public health. This paper reports on empirical findings on the relationship between the density of the residential environment, walking and total physical activity. Using multiple objective and self-reported measures for 715 participants in the US, and improved techniques for sampling and analysis, it finds that density is associated with the purpose of walking (travel, leisure) but not the amount of overall walking or overall physical activity, although there are sub-group differences by race/ethnicity. Overall, higher densities have many benefits in terms of efficient use of infrastructure, housing affordability, energy efficiency and possibly vibrant street life. But higher densities alone, like other built environment features, do not appear to be the silver bullet in the public health campaign to increase physical activity.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)679-697
Number of pages19
JournalUrban Studies
Volume44
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 2007

Bibliographical note

Copyright:
Copyright 2008 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Does residential density increase walking and other physical activity?'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this