"It’s not all about me": interactive effects of psychosocial and built-environment variables on physical-activity

Abstract

Background: Neighbourhood environments can support or hinder physical activity. This study examines how individual-level factors interact with environment-factors associated with physical activity in older adults. Methods: The Active Streets, Active People study recruited 193 older adults living in a highly walkable neighbourhood in Vancouver. Participants completed questionnaires on walking attitudes, gait efficacy, social support, and neighbourhood satisfaction. To assess physical activity, participants wore an accelerometer. To test whether neighbourhood satisfaction moderated the association of individual-level variables with physical activity we estimated multiple linear regression models with interaction terms. Findings: In total, 173 had valid accelerometry data and demonstrated high levels of daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (M=39.7,SD=34.1 minutes/day). Individual-level factors associated with MVPA were age and attitudes towards walking. Neighbourhood satisfaction moderated the association between gait efficacy and MVPA with stronger associations between gait efficacy and MVPA in individuals with higher levels of neighbourhood satisfaction. Discussion: Our findings suggest that feeling confident about walking ability is not sufficient to encourage physical activity. Only when individuals are satisfied with their neighbourhood will this translate into behavior.