Relationships Among Children’s Independent Mobility, Active Transportation, and Physical Activity: A Multisite Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

<jats:p><jats:italic><jats:bold>Purpose</jats:bold>:</jats:italic> Children’s independent mobility (IM) may facilitate both active transportation (AT) and physical activity (PA), but previous studies examining these associations were conducted in single regions that provided limited geographical variability. <jats:italic><jats:bold>Method</jats:bold>:</jats:italic> We recruited 1699 children (55.0% girls) in 37 schools stratified by level of urbanization and socioeconomic status in 3 regions of Canada: Ottawa, Trois-Rivières, and Vancouver. Participants wore a SC-StepRx pedometer for 7 days and completed a validated questionnaire from which we derived a 6-point IM index, the number of AT trips over a week, and the volume of AT to/from school (in kilometer per week). We investigated relationships among measures of IM, AT, and PA employing linear mixed models or generalized linear mixed models adjusted for site, urbanization, and socioeconomic status. <jats:italic><jats:bold>Results</jats:bold>:</jats:italic> Each unit increase in IM was associated with 9% more AT trips, 19% higher AT volume, and 147 more steps per day, with consistent results across genders. Both measures of AT were associated with marginally higher PA when pooling boys’ and girls’ data. Children in Vancouver engaged in more AT. PA did not vary across site, urbanization, or socioeconomic status. <jats:italic><jats:bold>Conclusion</jats:bold>:</jats:italic> IM was associated with more AT and PA regardless of where children lived, underscoring a need for IM interventions.</jats:p>

Why are you allowed to go to school on your own? Exploring children's voices on independent mobility

“…Children's independent mobility, defined as the freedom to move around their neighbourhood without adult supervision (Tranter & Whitelegg, 1994), has multiple physical, mental and social development benefits. Research suggests that, in terms of physical benefits, children who travel to school or engage in other daily activities autonomously have higher rates of physical activity (Larouche et al, 2020; Masoumi et al, 2020). Conversely, reduced independent mobility can decrease physical activity levels and increase sedentary activities (Page et al, 2005).…”

“…In Spain, currently, more than 40% of children between 6 and 9 years of age are overweight (Gobierno de España, 2020). According to several authors, an independent and active journey to school can be a powerful strategy to promote physical activity and, consequently, improve children's health (Campos‐Sánchez et al, 2020; Larouche et al, 2020; Savolainen et al, 2020).…”

“…to school or engage in other daily activities autonomously have higher rates of physical activity (Larouche et al, 2020;Masoumi et al, 2020). Conversely, reduced independent mobility can decrease physical activity levels and increase sedentary activities (Page et al, 2005).…”

Factors associated with active commuting to school in adolescents Autores/as

“…The lower access and availability of low-income families to motorized vehicles could justify the greater realization of more active journeys by children to school (Silva et al, 2018). In addition, making active trips to school depends in part on the independent mobility of schoolchildren, being higher in those families with lower income and lack of available vehicles to accompany their children to school (Larouche et al, 2020;Rodríguez-Rodríguez et al, 2021).…”

Eine Perspektive von Grundschulkindern auf Bedingungsfaktoren der aktiven und eigenständigen Mobilität – eine qualitative Studie

“… 2016 ; Larouche et al. 2020 ), ist es von entscheidender Bedeutung, beide Verhaltensweisen zu adressieren. Im Gegensatz zur aktiven Mobilität mit Begleitung eines Erwachsenen zeigen Kinder, die auf dem Schulweg ohne elterliche Begleitung unterwegs sind, ein höheres Maß täglicher körperlicher Aktivität (Mackett et al.…”