Prioritizing a research agenda on built environments and physical activity: a twin panel Delphi consensus process with researchers and knowledge users.

BACKGROUND: The growth of urban dwelling populations globally has led to rapid increases of research and policy initiatives addressing associations between the built environment and physical activity (PA). Given this rapid proliferation, it is important to identify priority areas and research questions for moving the field forward. The objective of this study was to identify and compare research priorities on the built environment and PA among researchers and knowledge users (e.g., policy makers, practitioners). METHODS: Between September 2022 and April 2023, a three-round, modified Delphi survey was conducted among two independent panels of international researchers (n = 38) and knowledge users (n = 23) to identify similarities and differences in perceived research priorities on the built environment and PA and generate twin 'top 10' lists of the most important research needs. RESULTS: From a broad range of self-identified issues, both panels ranked in common the most pressing research priorities including stronger study designs such as natural experiments, research that examines inequalities and inequities, establishing the cost effectiveness of interventions, safety and injuries related to engagement in active transportation (AT), and considerations for climate change and climate adaptation. Additional priorities identified by researchers included: implementation science, research that incorporates Indigenous perspectives, land-use policies, built environments that support active aging, and participatory research. Additional priorities identified by knowledge users included: built environments and PA among people living with disabilities and a need for national data on trip chaining, multi-modal travel, and non-work or school-related AT. CONCLUSIONS: Five common research priorities between the two groups emerged, including (1) to better understand causality, (2) interactions with the natural environment, (3) economic evaluations, (4) social disparities, and (5) preventable AT-related injuries. The findings may help set directions for future research, interdisciplinary and intersectoral collaborations, and funding opportunities.

Replication of the neighborhood active living potential measure in Saskatoon, Canada.

BACKGROUND: Few neighborhood observational measures have been replicated by separate research teams in different cities. PURPOSE: This study replicates the neighborhood active living potential observation measure in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. METHODS: Observers (n=5) participated in a 3-day neighborhood active living potential training session. Observers rated 60 neighborhoods in Saskatoon during the summer of 2009 by following a predetermined walking route constructed by joining ten randomly selected street segments for each neighborhood. Pairs of observers independently rated neighborhoods using an 18-item observation grid. Items represented three a priori-defined domains of active living potential: activity friendliness (six items); safety (four items); and density of destinations (eight items). Data analysis was conducted in autumn 2009. RESULTS: Application of ecometric multilevel modeling analyses showed that once inter-item and inter-observer variability were statistically controlled, one third of the variability in observations was among neighborhoods. Reliability estimates for observers were 0.84 for items measuring activity friendliness, 0.82 for safety, and 0.91 for density of destinations. Convergent validity showed that neighborhood income was associated negatively with density of destinations, positively with safety, and not associated with activity friendliness. Percentage of people in the neighborhood walking to work was positively associated with density of destinations and not associated with safety or activity friendliness. CONCLUSIONS: Results replicate findings from Montreal, Canada, that the three dimensions of the neighborhood active living potential measure have good reliability and convergent validity. Neighborhood active living potential appears to be a stable measure capturing three essential elements of neighborhoods.

Physical activity in women with arthritis: examining perceived barriers and self-regulatory efficacy to cope.

OBJECTIVE: To examine whether the theory-based social cognitions of perceived barrier frequency, barrier limitation, and self-regulatory efficacy to cope were predictors of planned physical activity among adult women with arthritis. A secondary purpose was to identify and provide a phenomenologic description of the relevant barriers and coping strategies reported by study participants. METHODS: Eighty adult women (mean +/- SD age 49.09 +/- 12.89 years) with self-reported doctor-diagnosed arthritis participated in this observational study. Participants completed online survey measures of barriers to physical activity and, for each barrier, reported the frequency of occurrence and the extent of limitation. Measures of coping strategies for each barrier, efficacy to cope, and physical activity were also obtained. RESULTS: A multiple hierarchical regression analysis resulted in a model that significantly predicted physical activity (F[9,70] = 6.80, P < 0.01, adjusted R(2) = 0.40). Barrier limitation (standardized beta = -0.56) and efficacy (standardized beta = 0.20) were significant independent predictors. Phenomenologic findings indicated that arthritis-specific personal barriers (e.g., pain and fatigue due to arthritis) and arthritis-specific coping strategies (e.g., activity modification) were more commonly reported than generic barriers and coping strategies. CONCLUSION: Self-regulatory efficacy to cope and relevant perceived physical activity barriers, which were primarily arthritis-specific and moderately or more limiting to planned physical activity, were important social cognitive predictors of physical activity, a key nonpharmacologic arthritis treatment, among women with arthritis. Future research direction should examine potential moderators of the relationship between these predictors and physical activity, such as pain acceptance.