Author Affiliation: Ingunn Fjørtoft is with Telemark University College in Norway. Country where research was conducted: Norway. C&NN Research Volume 2 Fjørtoft, I. (2004). Landscape as playscape: the effects of natural environments on children's play and motor development. Children, Youth and Environments, 14(2), 21-44. This article is available online at: http://www.colorado.edu/journals/cye/index_issues.htm.
Open public spaces are children’s favorite places for physical activity To better understand factors that influence children’s physical activity, Rehrer and colleagues had 173 12- to 13-year children from a high school in Dunedin, New Zealand draw a series of maps about their favorite and least favorite places for physical activity, where they went on a particular Sunday, and where they went on the previous school day. In addition, children described why they liked or avoided certain places and how they got to these places. In analyzing the data, Rehrer and colleagues found that open public spaces were children’s favorite places for physical activity, with 37% of students citing a beach close to school and 33% citing a nearby park as their favorite places. The most common reasons children liked these places were because of the ability to do specific physical activities, the ability to have fun, and having friends to do an activity with. With regard to least favorite places, researchers discovered that an industrial harbor area, other schools, and cemeteries were children’s least favorite places for physical activity. The most common reasons children disliked these places were because of bad people/bullies, it didn’t support physical activity, traffic, danger, and they were boring. With regard to children’s activities on a Sunday, Rehrer and colleagues found that children made more visits to specific built environments than green spaces and that the majority of children used a car for transport instead of walking or biking. Researchers also found some gender differences. For example, more girls than boys found good weather, living close to facilities, and having friends to do physical activity with important. While this study may be limited due to its small sample size and focus on students from one high school, it provides a valuable contribution to the literature because it focuses on children’s perspectives and demonstrates the role of both environmental and social factors in encouraging children’s physical activity. Author Affiliation: Nancy Rehrer is with the University of Otago in New Zealand. Country where research was conducted: New Zealand. C&NN Research Volume 5 Rehrer, N. J., Freeman, C., Cassidy, T., Waters, D. L., Barclay, G. E., & Wilson, N. C. (2011). Through the eyes of young people: Favourite places for physical activity. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health. This study may be available in a library near you or can be purchased online through the publisher at: http://sjp.sagepub.com/content/39/5/492.abstract
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