Submit to IJERPH Review for IJERPH Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Promotion of Active Commuting to School

Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
Published Papers

A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Health Behavior, Chronic Disease and Health Promotion".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2023) | Viewed by 38554

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Palma Chillón Garzón

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Physical Education and Sport, Faculty of Sport Sciences, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
Interests: physical activity; fitness; physical education; active commuting to school
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are organizing a Special Issue on “Promotion of Active Commuting to School” in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. The venue is a peer-reviewed scientific journal that publishes articles and communications in the interdisciplinary area of environmental health sciences and public health. For detailed information on the journal, we refer you to https://www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph.

Physical inactivity is the fourth leading risk factor for mortality worldwide, and most young people fail to meet the physical activity recommendations. Active forms of commuting to school, such as walking and cycling, provide a daily opportunity for physical activity and can contribute to meeting physical activity guidelines and the associated health benefits. In addition, active commuting to school may have other co-benefits, such as reductions in air pollution and traffic congestion in urban areas. Despite these health and environmental benefits, longitudinal studies show a decline in children’s active commuting in many developed countries. Although school is considered to be a potential key context to promoting active commuting to school, most school-based interventions have shown small or non-significant effects.

We invite investigators to contribute original research and review articles that will stimulate ongoing efforts to understand the diversity of factors that facilitate and/or inhibit the behavior of active commuting to school and create and share the best available evidence on the effectiveness of interventions to promote active commuting to school. Qualitative quantitative and mixed designs are welcome. Potential topics include but are not limited to (a) prevalence of modes of commuting to school, (b) benefits of active commuting to school, (c) correlates and determinants associated with active commuting to school, (d) effectiveness and feasibility of interventions to promote active commuting to school, and (e) implementation research in the scope of the promotion of active commuting to school.

Assoc. Prof. Palma Chillón Garzón
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Active commuting
Active transportation
Health-related
Public health
Physical activity
Fitness
Psychosocial
Social support
Quality of life
Environment
Emissions
Walkability
Bikeability
Interventions
School-setting

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (10 papers)

Download All Papers

Order results

Result details

Show export options Show export options

Select all

Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review, Other

23 pages, 425 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Validating the Perceived Active School Travel Enablers and Barriers–Parent (PASTEB–P) Questionnaire to Support Intervention Programming and Research

by Andrew F. Clark, Melissa Thomas, Adrian Buttazzoni, Matthew Adams, Stephanie E. Coen, Jamie Seabrook, Danielle Tobin, Trish Tucker and Jason Gilliland

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(10), 5874; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20105874 - 19 May 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1934

Abstract

A child’s ability to participate in active school travel (AST) is complicated by several factors. Of particular note are parental controls, which are informed by their perceptions of the local built and social environments, assessments of their child’s skills, and convenience preferences, among other considerations. However, there is currently a lack of AST-specific scales that include validated parental perception measures related to such notable barriers and enablers, or those that tend to frame their AST decision-making processes. Framed within the social-ecological model of health behaviour, the aims of the present paper were thus threefold, specifically to (1) outline and test the construct validity of measures delineating parental perceptions of barriers and enablers to AST, (2) evaluate the reliability and consistency of the developed measures, and (3) connect these measures to develop broader constructs for use in the Perceived Active School Travel Enablers and Barriers–Parent (PASTEB–P) questionnaire. To achieve these aims, a mixed-methods approach featuring cognitive interviews and surveys, along with qualitative (thematic analysis) and quantitative (Cohen’s Kappa, McDonald’s Omega, and confirmatory factor analysis) analyses, was applied across two studies. The validation processes of the two studies resulted in the development of fifteen items comprising seven distinct constructs (barriers: AST Skills, Convenience, Road Safety, Social Safety, and Equipment Storage; enablers: Supportive Environment and Safe Environment) related to parental perceptions of AST. The developed PASTEB–P questionnaire can be used to inform and evaluate AST intervention programming and can be applied for AST research purposes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Promotion of Active Commuting to School)

14 pages, 2107 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Effect of a School-Based Intervention on Children’s Cycling Knowledge, Mode of Commuting and Perceived Barriers: A Randomized Controlled Trial

by María Jesús Aranda-Balboa, Francisco Javier Huertas-Delgado, Patricia Gálvez-Fernández, Romina Saucedo-Araujo, Daniel Molina-Soberanes, Pablo Campos-Garzón, Manuel Herrador-Colmenero, Amador Jesús Lara-Sánchez, Javier Molina-García, Ana Queralt, Diane Crone and Palma Chillón

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(15), 9626; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19159626 - 5 Aug 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2421

Abstract

The low rates of active commuting to/from school in Spain, especially by bike, and the wide range of cycling interventions in the literature show that this is a necessary research subject. The aims of this study were: (1) to assess the feasibility of a school-based cycling intervention program for adolescents, (2) to analyse the effectiveness of a school-based cycling intervention program on the rates of cycling and other forms of active commuting to/from school (ACS), and perceived barriers to active commuting in adolescents. A total of 122 adolescents from Granada, Jaén and Valencia (Spain) participated in the study. The cycling intervention group participated in a school-based intervention program to promote cycling to school during Physical Education (PE) sessions in order to analyse the changes in the dependent variables at baseline and follow up of the intervention. Wilcoxon, Signs and McNemar tests were undertaken. The association of the intervention program with commuting behaviour, and perceived barriers to commuting, were analysed by binary logistic regression. There were improvements in knowledge at follow-up and the cycling skill scores were medium-low. The rates of cycling to school and active commuting to/from school did not change, and only the “built environment (walk)” barrier increased in the cycling group at follow-up. School-based interventions may be feasibly effective tools to increase ACS behaviour, but it is necessary to implement a longer period and continue testing further school-based cycling interventions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Promotion of Active Commuting to School)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

13 pages, 1139 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Active Commuting and Healthy Behavior among Adolescents in Neighborhoods with Varying Socioeconomic Status: The NESLA Study

by Benti Geleta Buli, Annika Tillander, Terence Fell and Katarina Bälter

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(7), 3784; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19073784 - 22 Mar 2022

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3563

Abstract

(1) Background: The World Health Organization recommends active commuting as a source of physical activity. Active commuting is determined by various factors, including the socioeconomic status (SES) of families and neighborhoods, distance to schools, perceived neighborhood safety, lifestyles and availability of walkways and biking paths. This study aimed to assess factors associated with modes of transportation to and from school among adolescents aged 16–19 living in a middle-sized city in Sweden. (2) Method: Three hundred and fourteen students, of whom 55% were females, from schools in the city of Västerås participated in the study. Printed as well as web-based self-administered questionnaires were used to collect the data. (3) Results: Adolescents living in high SES neighborhoods were 80% more likely to bike or walk to school (OR = 1.80; CI: 1.01, 3.20) than adolescents living in low SES neighborhoods. Furthermore, active commuting was associated with higher consumption of fruits and vegetables (OR = 1.77; CI: 1.05, 2.97) and less consumption of junk foods (OR = 0.43; CI: 0.26, 0.71), as compared to passive commuting. (4) Conclusions: Active commuting is a cost-effective and sustainable source of regular physical activity and should be encouraged at a societal level. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Promotion of Active Commuting to School)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

17 pages, 397 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Development and Initial Validation of the PILCAST Questionnaire: Understanding Parents’ Intentions to Let Their Child Cycle or Walk to School

by Hanna Forsberg, Anna-Karin Lindqvist, Sonja Forward, Lars Nyberg and Stina Rutberg

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(21), 11651; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182111651 - 6 Nov 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2612

Abstract

Children generally do not meet the recommendation of 60 min of daily physical activity (PA); therefore, active school transportation (AST) is an opportunity to increase PA. To promote AST, the involvement of parents seems essential. Using the theory of planned behavior (TPB), the aim was to develop and validate the PILCAST questionnaire to understand parents’ intentions to let their child cycle or walk to school. Cross-sectional sampling was performed, where 1024 responses were collected from parents. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated acceptable fit indices for the factorial structure according to the TPB, comprising 32 items grouped in 11 latent constructs. All constructs showed satisfying reliability. The regression analysis showed that the TPB explained 55.3% of parents’ intentions to let the child cycle to school and 20.6% regarding walking, increasing by a further 18.3% and 16.6%, respectively, when past behavior was added. The most influential factors regarding cycling were facilitating perceived behavioral control, positive attitudes, subjective and descriptive norms, and for walking, subjective and descriptive norms. The PILCAST questionnaire contributes to a better understanding of the psychological antecedents involving parents’ decisions to let their child cycle or walk to school, and may therefore provide guidance when designing, implementing and evaluating interventions aiming to promote AST. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Promotion of Active Commuting to School)

16 pages, 1479 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Children’s Experiences of Their Journey to School: Integrating Behaviour Change Frameworks to Inform the Role of the Built Environment in Active School Travel Promotion

by Nafsika Michail, Ayse Ozbil, Rosie Parnell and Stephanie Wilkie

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(9), 4992; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18094992 - 8 May 2021

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 6761

Abstract

Childhood obesity is a public health problem with multiple effects on children’s life. Promoting Active School Travel (AST) could provide an inclusive opportunity for physical activity and shape healthy behaviours. Data for this cross-sectional study were drawn from questionnaires carried out in five primary schools located in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, in neighbourhoods chosen for their variability in IMD (index of multiple deprivation) and spatial structure of street networks (measured through space syntax measure of integration). A randomly selected and heterogenic sample of 145 pupils (aged 9–10) completed an open-ended questionnaire to state what they like and dislike about their journey to school. Thematic analysis identified four typologies (environmental context, emotions, social influences and trip factors) based on the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) and specific themes and sub-themes underlying children’s affective experiences of their journeys to school. This study is the first known to authors to attempt to adapt the Capability, Opportunity and Motivation Behaviour (COM-B) model into AST and children’s experiences and associated behavioural domains with design aspects. Such an insight into children’s attitudes could inform urban planners and designers about how to apply more effective behaviour change interventions, targeting an AST increase among children. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Promotion of Active Commuting to School)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

11 pages, 345 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Socio-Demographic Correlates of Cycling to School among 12- to 15-Year Olds in Southern Germany

by Dorothea M. I. Schönbach, Catherina Brindley, Anne K Reimers, Adilson Marques and Yolanda Demetriou

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(24), 9269; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17249269 - 11 Dec 2020

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2604

Abstract

Depending on the region and urbanization level, the rate of cycling to school in Germany varies largely. The influence of distance from home to school, educational level, the school’s region, and parents’ socio-demographic characteristics on cycling to secondary school in Germany is unclear. Therefore, this study analyzed students’ and parents’ socio-demographic correlates of cycling to school, including separate analyses by gender, among 12- to 15-year-olds attending different (sub)urban schools in Southern Germany. In 2019, 121 students (girls: 40.5%, boys: 59.5%) aged 13.1 ± 0.9 and 42 parents (mothers: 81%, fathers: 19%) aged 47.8 ± 5.5 participated. Students completed a self-report questionnaire; parents completed a self- and proxy-report questionnaire. In total, between 61.7% and 67.5% of students sometimes cycled to school. Binary logistic regressions revealed that being a girl, increasing age, attending an intermediate educational level combined with a suburban school region (small or medium-sized town), increasing distance from home to school, and having parents who did not cycle to work led to declining odds of cycling to school. Many 12- to 15-year-olds sometimes cycled to school in (sub)urban school regions in Southern Germany. As several socio-demographic characteristics correlated with cycling to school, this should be considered when developing a future school-based bicycle intervention. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Promotion of Active Commuting to School)

13 pages, 315 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Long-Term Perspectives of a School-Based Intervention to Promote Active School Transportation

by Eva Savolainen, Stina Rutberg, Ylva Backman and Anna-Karin Lindqvist

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(14), 5006; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17145006 - 12 Jul 2020

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 4541

Abstract

There is a global need for sustainable interventions that increase physical activity among children, and active school transportation (AST) can promote physical activity among schoolchildren. Therefore, an intervention based on gamification, empowerment, and social cognitive theory was initiated in 2016 to promote AST. The aim of this study was to follow up on participants’ experiences one and two years after the AST intervention was initiated. Data were collected through focus groups and individual interviews which were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Thirty-one pupils (2017), and forty pupils (2018) aged 9–10 years, two teachers (2017, 2018) and one principal (2018) participated in the study. The result is presented as one main theme; “Unity for an active community-An intervention towards making the active choice the easy choice” and three sub-themes; “Well begun is half done-Engagement sparks motivation”, “It takes two to tango-Keep moving with gamifications and togetherness” and “Jumping on the bandwagon–From project to everyday use.” The results show that the concept of the intervention was attractive to re-use and that it created a habit to use AST among the children. Interventions to promote AST can benefit from the use of engagement, togetherness, and gamification. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Promotion of Active Commuting to School)

17 pages, 4916 KiB

Open AccessArticle

School Neighbourhood Built Environment Assessment for Adolescents’ Active Transport to School: Modification of an Environmental Audit Tool and Protocol (MAPS Global-SN)

by Tessa Pocock, Antoni Moore, Javier Molina-García, Ana Queralt and Sandra Mandic

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(7), 2194; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17072194 - 25 Mar 2020

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4102

Abstract

School neighbourhood built environments (SN-BE) can influence adolescents’ active transport to school habits. Typically, SN-BE assessment has involved micro-scale (i.e., environmental audits) or macro-scale (Geographic Information Systems (GIS)) assessment tools. However, existing environmental audits are time/resource-intensive and not specific to school neighbourhoods, while GIS databases are not generally purposed to include micro-scale data. This study evaluated the inter-rater reliability and feasibility of using a modified audit tool and protocol (Microscale Audit of Pedestrian Streetscapes Global–School Neighbourhood (MAPS Global-SN)) to assess the SN-BE of twelve secondary schools in Dunedin, New Zealand. Correlations between MAPS Global-SN and GIS measures of the SN-BE were also examined. Specifically, MAPS Global-SN audit and GIS spatial analysis (intersection density, residential density, land use mix, walkability) was conducted within a 0.5 km street-network buffer-zone around all twelve schools. Based on investigator and expert consultation, MAPS Global-SN included eight modifications to both auditing processes and items. Inter-rater reliability data was collected from two independent auditors across two schools. The feasibility of a condensed audit protocol (auditing one side of each street segment in the neighbourhood, compared to both sides) was also assessed. Results indicated the modified MAPS Global-SN tool had good to excellent inter-rater reliability and the condensed MAPS Global-SN audit protocol appeared to sufficiently represent the micro-scale SN-BE. Results also highlighted the complementary nature of micro- and macro-scale assessments. Further recommendations for SN-BE assessment are discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Promotion of Active Commuting to School)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research, Other

29 pages, 1666 KiB

Open AccessReview

Changing Primary School Children’s Engagement in Active School Travel Using Safe Routes to School Interventions: A Rapid Realist Review

by Thomas V. Vasey, Suzanne J. Carroll, Mark Daniel and Margaret Cargo

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(16), 9976; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19169976 - 12 Aug 2022

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2407

Abstract

Safe Routes to School (SR2S) interventions have been implemented in many economically developed countries to improve children’s engagement in Active School Travel (AST). Evaluations have highlighted inconsistencies in SR2S intervention outcomes, raising questions as to how, why, and under what contextual conditions these interventions work. This review used a Rapid Realist Review (RRR) methodology to build, test, and refine an overarching program theory that unpicks the contextual factors and underlying mechanisms influencing children’s engagement in AST. From the 45 included documents, 16 refined Context–Mechanism–Outcome Configurations (CMOCs) were developed and clustered into three partial program theories (i.e., implementor/implementation, child, and parent), with the associated mechanisms of: (1) School Reliance; (2) School Priority; (3) Fun; (4) Pride; (5) Perceived Safety; (6) Distrust; (7) Convenience; (8) Perceived Capabilities; and (9) Reassurance. The overarching program theory delineates the pathways between intervention implementation, children’s motivation, parental decision-making, and children’s engagement in AST. The findings suggest SR2S interventions can motivate children to engage in AST, but whether this motivation is translated into engagement is determined by parental decision-making. This review is novel for highlighting that many of the factors influencing parental decision-making are contextually driven and appear to be unaddressed by the current suite of SR2S intervention strategies. The review additionally highlights the complexity of parental perceptions of safety, with the traffic and the road environment shaping only part of this multidimensional mechanism. Practitioners and policymakers need to tailor SR2S interventions to local contexts to better influence parental decision-making for children’s engagement in AST. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Promotion of Active Commuting to School)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Other

Jump to: Research, Review

20 pages, 1721 KiB

Open AccessStudy Protocol

A School-Based Randomized Controlled Trial to Promote Cycling to School in Adolescents: The PACO Study

by Palma Chillón, Patricia Gálvez-Fernández, Francisco Javier Huertas-Delgado, Manuel Herrador-Colmenero, Yaira Barranco-Ruiz, Emilio Villa-González, María Jesús Aranda-Balboa, Romina Gisele Saucedo-Araujo, Pablo Campos-Garzón, Daniel Molina-Soberanes, José Manuel Segura-Díaz, Fernando Rodríguez-Rodríguez, Amador Jesús Lara-Sánchez, Ana Queralt, Javier Molina-García, Enrique García Bengoechea and Sandra Mandic

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(4), 2066; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18042066 - 20 Feb 2021

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 5420

Abstract

This manuscript describes the rationale and protocol of a school-based randomized controlled trial called “Cycling and Walk to School” (PACO, by its Spanish acronym) that aims to promote cycling to and from school and physical activity (PA) in adolescents. This study will examine the effects of this intervention in cycling and active commuting to and from school (ACS), PA and several ACS-related factors based on self-determination theory (SDT) and a social-ecological model (SEM). A total of 360 adolescents attending six high schools (three experimental and three control) from three Spanish cities will participate in this randomized controlled trial. The intervention (four cycling sessions; 1–2 h per session, one session per week) will be conducted by the research staff; the control group will continue their usual activities. PA levels will be measured by accelerometers, whereas ACS and the other study variables will be self-reported using questionnaires at baseline and post-intervention. The primary outcomes will be: rates of cycling to school, ACS and PA levels. In addition, SDT-related variables and individual, interpersonal, community, and environment variables relevant to ACS will be based on SEM. The findings will provide a comprehensive understanding of the short-term effects of this school-based intervention on cycling to school behaviour, ACS and PA levels in Spanish adolescents. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Promotion of Active Commuting to School)

► Show Figures

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Promotion of Active Commuting to School

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editor

Special Issue Information

Keywords

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

Published Papers (10 papers)

Research

Review

Other

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI