title: Development and application of a moveability index to quantify possibilities for physical activity in the built environment of children.
abstract: Several studies show that urban forms are environmental correlates of physical activity. Most of these studies used data based on questionnaires while only a few used geographic information systems (GIS) to objectively assess urban forms. Based on GIS data, we applied a kernel density method to measure urban forms and combined these measures to a moveability index to assess the opportunities for physical activity in the German intervention region of the IDEFICS study. In this proof-of-principal analysis, we linked the moveability index with physical activity data obtained from the baseline survey of the IDEFICS study. Regression analyses revealed a modest but significant impact of the built environment on the physical activity of 596 school children in the study region, supporting the potential application of the moveability index.
authors.affiliation: Bremen Institute for Prevention Research and Social Medicine, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany.
authors.forename: Christoph
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Buck
authors.forename: Hermann
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Pohlabeln
authors.forename: Inge
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Huybrechts
authors.forename: Ilse
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: De Bourdeaudhuij
authors.forename: Yannis
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Pitsiladis
authors.forename: Lucia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Reisch
authors.forename: Iris
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pigeot
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003625:Data Collection; D004779:Environment Design; D015444:Exercise; D040362:Geographic Information Systems; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D011336:Probability; D012044:Regression Analysis; D016138:Walking