title: Walking and Walkability: Is Wayfinding a Missing Link? Implications for Public Health Practice.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Research on walking and walkability has yet to focus on wayfinding, the interactive, problem-solving process by which people use environmental information to locate themselves and navigate through various settings.
  
  
  METHODS
  We reviewed the literature on outdoor pedestrian-oriented wayfinding to examine its relationship to walking and walkability, 2 areas of importance to physical activity promotion.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Our findings document that wayfinding is cognitively demanding and can compete with other functions, including walking itself. Moreover, features of the environment can either facilitate or impede wayfinding, just as environmental features can influence walking.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although there is still much to be learned about wayfinding and walking behaviors, our review helps frame the issues and lays out the importance of this area of research and practice.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA.
authors.forename: Ann E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Vandenberg
authors.forename: Rebecca H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Hunter
authors.forename: Lynda A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: Lucinda L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Bryant
authors.forename: Steven P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Hooker
authors.forename: William A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: Satariano
mesh_terms: D004779:Environment Design; D015438:Health Behavior; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D015980:Public Health Practice; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D016138:Walking