title: Association between perceived urban built environment attributes and leisure-time physical activity among adults in Hangzhou, China.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Neighborhood built environment may influence residents' physical activity, which in turn, affects their health. This study aimed to determine the associations between perceived built environment and leisure-time physical activity in Hangzhou, China.
  
  
  METHODS
  1440 participants aged 25-59 were randomly selected from 30 neighborhoods in three types of administrative planning units in Hangzhou. International Physical Activity Questionnaire long form and NEWS-A were used to obtain individual-level data. The China Urban Built Environment Scan Tool was used to objectively assess the neighborhood-level built environment. Multi-level regression was used to explore the relationship between perceived built environment variables and leisure-time physical activities. Data was collected in Hangzhou from June to December in 2012, and was analyzed in May 2013.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Significant difference between neighborhood random variations in physical activity was identified (P=0.0134); neighborhood-level differences accounted for 3.0% of the variability in leisure-time physical activity. Male residents who perceived higher scores on access to physical activity destinations reported more involvement in leisure-time physical activity. Higher scores on perception of esthetic quality, and lower on residential density were associated with more time in leisure-time walking in women.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The present study demonstrated that perceived urban built environment attributes significantly correlate with leisure-time physical activity in Hangzhou, China.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China.
authors.forename: Meng
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Su
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China.
authors.forename: Ya-Yun
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.affiliation: Department of Chronic Non-communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou 310021, China.
authors.forename: Qing-Min
authors.initials: QM
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Chronic Non-communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou 310021, China.
authors.forename: Yan-Jun
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Ren
authors.affiliation: Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
authors.forename: Ichiro
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kawachi
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China. Electronic address: lmlee@vip.163.com.
authors.forename: Li-Ming
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China. Electronic address: lvjun@bjmu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lv
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002681:China; D004779:Environment Design; D015444:Exercise; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011998:Recreation; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012931:Social Environment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014505:Urban Population
keywords: Built environment; Neighborhood; Perceived environment; Physical activity