Do Physical Activity Facilities near Schools Affect Physical Activity in High School Girls?

Author(s)

Jennifer L. Trilk
Dianne S. Ward
Marsha Dowda, University of South Carolina - ColumbiaFollow
Karin A. Pfeiffer
Dwayne E. Porter
James Hibbert
Russell R. Pate, University of South Carolina - ColumbiaFollow

Document Type

Article

Abstract

Objective - To investigate associations between the number of physical activity facilities within walking distance of school and physical activity behavior in 12^th grade girls during after-school hours.

Methods - Girls (N=1394) from 22 schools completed a self-report to determine physical activity after 3:00 pm. The number of physical activity facilities within a 0.75-mile buffer of the school was counted with a Geographic Information System. Associations between the number of facilities and girls' physical activity were examined using linear mixed-model analysis of variance.

Results - Overall, girls who attended schools with ≥ 5 facilities within the buffer reported more physical activity per day than girls in schools with < 5 facilities. In addition, girls who attended rural schools with ≥ 5 facilities reported ~12% more physical activity per day than girls who attended rural schools with < 5 facilities. No difference existed for girls in urban/suburban schools with ≥ 5 vs. < 5 facilities.

Conclusion - When school siting decisions are made, the number of physical activity facilities surrounding the school should be considered to encourage physical activity in 12^th grade girls.

Publication Info

Postprint version. Published in Health and Place, Volume 17, Issue 2, 2011, pages 651-657.

Rights

Trilk, J. L., Ward, D. S., Dowda, M., Pfeiffer, K. A., Porter, D. E., Hibbert, J., & Pate, R. R. (2011). Do physical activity facilities near schools affect physical activity in high school girls? Health and Place, 17(2), 651-657.

DOI: 10.1016/j.healthplace.2011.01.005

NOTICE: This is author's version of a work that was accepted for publication in Health and Place. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Health and Place, Vol. #17, Issue #2, DOI: 10.10/j.healthplace.2011.01.005

© Health and Place, 2011, Elsevier

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1353829211000128