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. 2026 Sep 30;41(5):daag145. doi: 10.1093/heapro/daag145

Children’s independent mobility in Japan: travelling to, returning from, and playing within local parks

Tomoko Doi Hata 1,2,✉, Tomoya Ohyama 3, Jenny Veitch 4, Daisuke Takagi 5
PMCID: PMC13625650  PMID: 42814563

Abstract

Children's independent mobility (CIM), a parental permission for children to travel and play at a destination without adult supervision, is considered essential for supporting both the physical and psychological well-being of children. Of the various places CIM can be granted, the present study focused on local parks as a destination. The study aimed to understand children’s travel to local parks without adult supervision (CIM to park), children’s travel returning from local parks without adult supervision (CIM from park) and playing at/within local parks without adult supervision (CIM within park), and factors influencing the parental grant of that CIM. An online survey was completed by 3000 mothers in Japan about their primary school-aged child. Among the children who visited parks (88.7%), approximately half of the children were granted each type of park CIM in total. The results from the logistic regression indicated that girls were less likely than boys to be granted CIM from parks. For all CIMs, if mothers thought that the child was capable of protecting themselves from crime and accidents, the odds of being granted CIM were higher. Additionally, mothers who believed that local residents could protect their children from crime were more likely to permit CIM of all types. This suggests that the presence of local residents may facilitate CIM associated with parks, especially for children whose mothers do not consider them yet capable of self-protection.

Keywords: children’s independent mobility, youth, local parks, Japan, active play, active travel, primary school children

Contribution to Health Promotion.

  • Analysed children’s independent mobility (CIM) associated with local parks from three aspects: travelling to, returning from, and playing within local parks.

  • Suggested that the presence of local residents may facilitate park CIM, especially for children whose mothers do not consider them yet capable of self-protection.

  • Findings indicate that previous inconsistent results on gender differences in CIM may be attributed to the aspect of ‘returning from’ a destination, highlighting a potential area for addressing gender discrepancies.

Introduction

Children’s independent mobility (CIM) refers to the autonomy of children to travel to nearby community locations—such as schools, parks, playgrounds, and shops—without adult accompaniment (Hillman et al. 1990, Tranter and Whitelegg 1994). In this context, children could be with friends and/or siblings to be independent. Furthermore, CIM encompasses children's ability to remain and engage in activities at these destinations unsupervised by adults (Riazi and Faulkner 2018). The extent of this freedom is typically permitted by parents or guardians (Crawford et al. 2017) and tends to increase as children grow older (Carver et al. 2013).

Multiple studies have demonstrated that CIM enhances children’s opportunities for physical activity (Faulkner et al. 2009, Carver et al. 2010, Schoeppe et al. 2013, 2014). This is important as the World Health Organization (WHO 2020) recommends that children aged 5–17 engage in at least 60 min of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity daily. Furthermore, CIM is also known to have cognitive and social developmental benefits (Waygood 2020, Ferreira et al. 2024). For instance, an Italian study found that children who travelled to school independently produced more accurate sketch maps of their school-commuting route compared with those accompanied by adults (Rissotto and Tonucci 2002). A British study also found that children who travelled independently remembered local landmarks more accurately in their sketch maps (Mackett et al. 2007). Socially, a different study in Italy demonstrated that children with higher levels of CIM played more often with neighbourhood children (Prezza et al. 2001). Similarly, research conducted in Japan revealed that children with high independent mobility played more often with friends, whereas those with lower levels of independent mobility tended to spend more time playing with grandparents (Amemiya et al. 2010).

CIM can be granted to various places, but the most studied place is school. Research on CIM related to school commutes is substantial as schools are daily destinations for children and active travel modes such as walking, cycling, or using scooters contribute to children’s overall physical activity levels (Timperio et al. 2006, Abbott et al. 2009, Mitra 2013, Laverty et al. 2021). In contrast, there is comparatively less research focused on CIM to non-school destinations, including local parks (Desjardins et al. 2022), likely because these sites are not essential daily destinations for children. However, nearby parks are an important destination that children could visit on their own and serve as vital recreational environments that meaningfully support children’s physical activity (Kelso et al. 2021). When a child is allowed to play outside without adult supervision (i.e. independent outdoor play), children are more active (Page et al. 2009, Schoeppe et al. 2014). Additionally, parks play an important role in fostering social ties among children (Veitch et al. 2020) and facilitating contacts with nature (Goltsman et al. 2009). A large body of literature demonstrates that exposure to natural environments also has beneficial effects on mental health (Hartig et al. 2014, Hartig 2021), a finding that holds true for children and adolescents (Tillmann et al. 2018).

While children may visit parks with their guardians, granting CIM to access parks has been shown to increase park visitation. Veitch et al. (2014) found that in a disadvantaged area of Australia, children aged 8–16 who were permitted independent mobility to parks were more likely to visit parks at least once a week. Furthermore, when children are allowed independent mobility, the nature of their outdoor play tends to be more unstructured (Amemiya et al. 2013). While ‘outdoors’ in this context does not always specifically refer to local parks, it has been found that permission to play unsupervised in parks (i.e. CIM within parks) was an important factor in increasing primary school-aged children’s visits to parks in Japan (Van Truong et al. 2023). Furthermore, research conducted in Japan revealed that children who were not permitted CIM to parks were less likely to engage in ‘insect play’ and ‘exploration play’, especially among boys (Amemiya et al. 2010, Hata et al. 2010).

Collectively, park CIM indicated in previous research encompasses independent travel to and from parks, and autonomous play at parks. That is, CIM regarding parks are constructed from three different aspects; travelling to a park without adult supervision (CIM to park), returning from a park without adult supervision (CIM from park), and playing at/within a park without adult supervision (CIM within park). However, permission for independent travel to destinations does not necessarily imply permission for independent outdoor play at those destinations. In Australia, 62% of parents’ restricted children aged 8–12 years from travelling independently, while 74% limited outdoor play to within 500 m of their home (Schoeppe et al. 2015). Similarly, Qiu and Zhu (2021) analysed CIM to non-school destinations for both travel and outdoor play in the USA and found that 38% of parents never allowed independent travel to non-school destinations and 42% did not allow unsupervised outdoor play for children in grades two to five. In Japan, Hashimura et al. (2019) found that about 85% of primary school children in their sample were allowed to go to a park alone or with other children, while another study in Japan reported that about 65% of primary school children in their sample could play at parks without adult supervision (Van Truong et al. 2023). Since children are usually granted more CIM as they acquire safety skills (Crawford et al. 2017), there is a possibility that children acquire the skills to travel unsupervised and to play unsupervised separately rather than simultaneously. Yet, existing research remains unclear regarding the granting of CIM to, from, and within nearby parks.

Also, previous studies have shown that parents’ decisions to grant CIM are influenced by children’s age and gender, the physical environment, ethnicity or cultural background, and parents’ perceptions of their children’s competence. Although there is a predominance of literature positing that age is associated with CIM (Carver et al. 2012), existing research presents mixed findings regarding gender: some studies report that boys receive CIM earlier than girls (Villanueva et al. 2014, Kojima 2022), others indicate girls are granted more CIM (Veitch et al. 2008), and some find no significant gender effect (Johansson 2006, Zeng et al. 2025). In addition, degree of urbanization is found to be related to CIM (Marzi et al. 2018) but the findings are also mixed: more CIM has been reported in less urbanized areas of Portugal (Lopes et al. 2014), the results are not clear in Australia (Carver et al. 2012) and in Japan, higher CIM were found in urban areas (Hino et al. 2025). Furthermore, recent reviews (Marzi et al. 2018, Riazi et al. 2022) have highlighted several priority areas for intervention to promote CIM, including children’s skills and confidence, parents’ confidence in children’s abilities, parents’ perceptions of traffic and fear of crime, and concerns about stranger danger. Lastly, existing research is predominantly concentrated in North America, Europe, and Australia, with limited studies conducted in Asia.

Accordingly, this study examined who parents think could protect their children from crime (harm from non-family members) and accidents to determine the factors affecting the granting of CIM. This study was conducted using a sample of mothers of primary school-aged children in Japan, encompassing data from all grade levels, both genders, and areas with varying degrees of urbanization. Japan has been identified internationally as a nation with higher CIM (Drianda and Kinoshita 2011, Shaw et al. 2015), and higher rates of children engaging in physical activity (Aubert et al. 2022). In Japan, the majority of primary school-aged children are permitted to independently travel to school (77% nationwide in Hino et al. 2025) and the majority of children reach the recommended physical activity level (60%–66% nationally in Tanaka et al. 2022). For comparative purposes, in Australia where CIM has been widely studied, 19.9% of children independently travel to school (Carver et al. 2019) and 20%–26% of children meet the recommended physical activity level (Hesketh et al. 2023).

In summary, the present study examines park visitation, travelling to parks (CIM to and CIM from parks) and playing within parks (CIM within parks) separately. The study’s primary objective was to identify the factors that influence parental permission for CIM to/from/within nearby parks.

Materials and methods

Study design and setting

The survey was administered online to mothers of primary school-aged children in Japan in March 2025. The survey included measures about children’s play, CIM, children’s time spent for sleeping/studying/physical activity, parenting values and social networks. Only the data from the measures about children’s play and park-related independent mobility for daylight hours are reported here.

Participants and recruitment

Research panels of a web-survey company in Japan were used to administer the survey. Potential participants were informed that the survey was about children’s safety and that they were able to opt-out anytime. When consented, the survey continued on to those who answered that they were the mother, and their oldest or only child is attending a public primary school. It is known that having siblings influences CIM and having older sibling has a significant effect for CIM to travel to a park (Christian et al. 2016). Therefore, we asked about their first born or their only child (i.e. children who did not have an older sibling). Data from respondents with duplicate responses and IP addresses, short response times and inconsistent responses were dropped. Data collection continued until each grade level/gender group reached its target quota (250 participants). Since Japanese primary school is 6 years nationally, data were collected from 500 participants for each grade level making the total sample 3000 participants. The data were collected for an equal number of boys and girls (1500 mothers of boys and 1500 mothers of girls; see Table 1 for demographics).

Table 1.

Sociodemographic characteristics of parent (mother) (n = 3000).

N (%) or mean (SD)
Age Mean years (SD) 40.6 (5.13)
Gender Female 2986 (99.5%)
Male 9 (0.3%)
Other 5 (0.2%)
Education level High school or less 703 (23.4%)
Vocational school/Junior college/Kosen 1030 (34.3%)
Bachelor’s degree or higher 1267 (42.2%)
Partner status Living with a partner 2655 (88.5%)
Has a partner but not living with them 70 (2.3%)
Does not have a partner 275 (9.2%)
Employment status Has paid job 2071 (69.0%)
Does not have paid job 929 (31.0%)
Number of children 1 1237 (41.2%)
2 1378 (45.9%)
3 346 (11.5%)
4 31 (1.0%)
5 or more 8 (0.3%)
Proportion of Japanese population in 2020a
Residence region (prefectures) Hokkaido (Hokkaido) 126 (4.2%) 4.1%
Tohoku (Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Akita, Yamagata, Fukushima) 180 (6.0%) 6.8%
Northern Kanto (Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma) 124 (4.1%) 5.3%
Southern Kanto (Saitama, Chiba, Tokyo, Kanagawa) 886 (29.5%) 29.3%
Hokuriku/Tousan (Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, Fukui, Yamanashi, Nagano) 175 (5.8%) 6.3%
Tokai (Gifu, Shizuoka, Aichi, Mie) 363 (12.1%) 11.8%
Eastern Kinki (Shiga, Nara, Wakayama) 104 (3.5%) 2.9%
Western Kinki (Kyoto, Osaka, Hyogo) 460 (15.3%) 13.4%
Chugoku (Tottori, Shimane, Okayama, Hiroshima, Yamaguchi) 183 (6.1%) 5.8%
Shikoku (Tokushima, Kagawa, Ehime, Kochi) 76 (2.5%) 2.9%
Kyushu and Okinawa (Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, Kumamoto, Oita, Miyazaki, Kagoshima, Okinawa) 258 (8.6%) 11.3%
Unknown 65 (2.2%)
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a2025 Population Statistics by National Institute of Population and Social Security Research (https://www.ipss.go.jp/syoushika/tohkei/Popular/P_Detail2025.asp?fname=T09-05.htm).

Measures

Mothers were asked if their child played at various places. The questionnaire was based on Children’s Play Scale (Dodd et al. 2021). However, in this paper, we only present data on parks/playgrounds. The survey was administered in Japanese and the Japanese word ‘koen’ could mean both parks and playgrounds, but the English word parks are used here.

The response options included: ‘Do not play here’, ‘Few times a year’, ‘Once a month’, ‘2–3 times a month’, ‘Once a week’, ‘2–3 days a week’, ‘4–6 days a week’, and ‘Everyday’. The responses were dichotomized to ‘Do not visit parks at all’ and ‘Visits parks’. For those who played at parks (i.e. those who did not answer ‘Do not play’), mothers were asked if they granted permission during daylight hours for their child to go to parks without an adult (i.e. CIM to park), to return from parks without an adult (i.e. CIM from park), and to be at a park without adult supervision (i.e. CIM within park). CIM to, from and within parks were each coded 1 when the permission was given and 0 when the permission was not given.

Mothers were asked who can best protect their oldest or only child from crime (harm from others, excluding family members) within parks and during the journey between parks and home when walking or biking. Mothers were also asked who can best protect their oldest or only child from accidents within parks and during the journey between parks and home. The journey and within parks were asked separately. Mothers selected one from the following response options: child themselves, guardian (e.g. the participant), adult family member (e.g. grandparents), child family member (e.g. siblings/cousins), friends’ adult guardian, friends/peers, teachers/staffs, volunteers, neighbours/local residents, local government, police, and other. The responses for adult family member and adult guardian of friend were combined to ‘other adults’; child family member and friends/peers were combined to ‘other children’; volunteers and neighbours/local residents were combined to ‘local residents’; and the responses for teachers/staff, local government and police were combined to ‘authorities’. Child family members and friends/peers were combined into a single category because the distinction between relatives of a similar age, such as cousins, and friends may not always be clear. Volunteers and neighbours/local residents were combined into a single category because, in Japan, community-based child safety activities are often carried out by local residents, such as parent volunteers of the children attending local primary schools, retired citizen volunteers, and/or neighbours living along school routes. The activities range from organized initiatives, such as school-based crime-prevention neighbourhood patrols (Hata and Shimada 2025) to neighbours living along school routes watering their flowerpots as ‘Plus Bouhan’—a crime-prevention approach integrated with daily activities like jogging, dog walking and/or gardening (Hino 2018).

Mothers reported the postal code (7-digit numeric number that can specify a smaller neighbourhood or subdivision within the neighbourhood) for their residence. This was converted into a walkability score using the Japan Postcode-level Walkability Index (JPWI). JPWI is a publicly accessible objective walkability index developed by Tanimoto et al. (2023) for all postal code areas across Japan. Population density, diversity of daily living facilities (e.g. supermarkets, libraries, cafes, and banks), and road connectivity are used to calculate the score. The higher JPWI values mean higher walkability and are predominant in urban areas, especially in the three major metropolitan areas around Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya. The JPWI of the 65 participants who did not provide an accurate postal code could not be calculated.

Covariates

Parents’ educational level and mother’s employment status have been identified as parental factors that influence outdoor play of children in a systematic review (Boxberger and Reimers 2019). Mothers’ educational level for this study was grouped to ‘high school or less’, ‘vocational school/junior college/kosen’, and ‘bachelor’s degree or higher’. ‘Kosen’ is a 5-year engineering-focused school in Japan that starts after junior high school. Employment status was categorized based on whether the mother had a paid job. Partner status was also considered as a covariate. It is not uncommon for Japanese parents to live separately for work (i.e. typically the father resides separately while children live with their mother to go to school in a different area), therefore partner status was grouped to ‘living with a partner’, ‘has a partner but not living with’ and ‘does not have a partner’. The existence of younger siblings was also included as a covariate.

Statistical analysis

Statistical analyses were performed applying jamovi version 2.3.28.0/2.6.45.0 and js-STAR XR+, with significance level established at P < .05. The following analyses were performed: (i) descriptive statistics of sociodemographic characteristics of the children’s mother, children’s visitation to parks, park-related CIMs, perceived protector from crime/accidents during journeys and within parks, and walkability score were calculated; (ii) forced-entry logistic regression for the grant of CIM travelling to parks was conducted; (iii) forced-entry logistic regression for the grant of CIM returning from parks was conducted; (iv) forced-entry logistic regression for the grant of CIM within parks was conducted. In the forced-entry logistic regression models for CIM travelling to and returning from parks, grade, gender, JPWI score, perceived protector from crime ‘during journeys to/from’ parks, perceived protector from accidents ‘during journeys to/from’ parks, and covariates including mother’s education, employment status, partner status, and the presence of younger siblings of the child were entered simultaneously. In the forced-entry logistic regression model for CIM within parks, grade, gender, JPWI score, perceived protector from crime ‘within parks’, perceived protector from accidents ‘within parks’, and the same covariates were entered simultaneously. (v) A supplementary analysis was conducted to further examine the effect of the environment (i.e. urbanization) by adding interaction terms between walkability and grade, and between walkability and gender.

Those who did not play at parks and/or those without a walkability score (n = 400 in total) were excluded from the logistic regression analysis. Participants who did not play at parks were excluded from the analysis because not visiting parks may reflect children’s own preferences or time constraints, rather than the grant of park CIMs. Participants without valid postcode data were also excluded because the degree of urbanization, represented by the walkability score, was expected to influence the granting of park-related CIMs.

Ethical approval

The study was conducted in accordance with the Code of Ethics and Conduct of The Japanese Psychological Association and approved by the Bunkyo Gakuin University Department of Humanities Ethics Board (2024-032).

Results

Participants

Table 1 shows the sociodemographic characteristics of the children’s mother. Despite all of the participants declaring that their parental role was that of a mother to their oldest/only child, some participants identified themselves as male (n = 9) or other (n = 5). In this study, the role of the mother was considered to be significant. Therefore, the responses of mothers who did not identify themselves as female in gender were not excluded from the analysis.

Children’s visitation to parks and CIMs of parks

There were 339 (11.3%) children in total who did not visit parks at all. Of those who visited parks (n = 2661, 88.7%), about half received permission for each CIM: 1502 (56.4%) for CIM to parks, 1341 (50.4%) for CIM from parks, and 1467 (55.1%) for CIM within parks. Figure 1 illustrates that fewer children in younger grades ‘Do not play’ at parks but are granted fewer CIMs; conversely, more children in older grades ‘Do not play’ at parks but are granted more CIMs. When only one CIM is granted, 55.2% were for CIM to parks, 17.0% were for CIM from parks, and 27.8% were for CIM within parks. When two CIMs are granted, 52.4% were for CIM to and within parks, 19.6% were for CIM to and from parks, and 28.0% were for within and from parks.

Figure 1.

A 100% stacked bar chart showing the percentage of children in each grade, from Year 1 to Year 6, that do not play at parks, are granted one park CIM, are granted two park CIMs and are granted three park CIMs.

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Percentage of children’s visitations and CIMs of parks by grade level (N = 3000).

Perceived protector from crime/accidents during journeys and within parks

For both settings (journey and within park) and both types of risk (crime and accidents), approximately 40% of mothers indicated that their child can protect themselves, while about 45% identified guardians as the primary protectors (Table 2).

Table 2.

Protection from crime and accidents (n = 3000).

Child themselves Guardian Other adults Other children Local residents Authorities Other Total
Protection from crime
Journey 1318 (43.9%) 1324 (44.1%) 66 (2.2%) 29 (1.0%) 105 (3.5%) 98 (3.3%) 60 (2.0%) 3000
Within park 1202 (40.1%) 1339 (44.6%) 94 (3.1%) 48 (1.6%) 146 (4.9%) 121 (4.0%) 50 (1.7%) 3000
Protection from accidents
Journey 1310 (43.7%) 1380 (46.0%) 56 (1.9%) 34 (1.1%) 75 (2.5%) 93 (3.1%) 52 (1.7%) 3000
Within park 1252 (41.7%) 1388 (46.3%) 67 (2.2%) 36 (1.2%) 94 (3.1%) 118 (3.9%) 45 (1.5%) 3000
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Walkability of the neighbourhood

The theoretical range for JPWI is −1.85 to 2.59 with an average of 0.00 (SD = 0.94). In the present study, successfully calculated JPWI ranged from −1.68 to 2.59 with an average of 0.90 (SD 0.69). About half of the participants’ JPWI fell between 0.5 and 1.49 (n = 1587, 52.9%). Approximately one-fifth were 1.5 and above (n = 583, 19.4%), and about a quarter were less than 0.5 (n = 765, 25.5%). Only a small number of participants (9.5%) had scores below 0.0. This may be due to the fact that participants were mothers of public primary school-aged children, which implies proximity to a primary school and likely excluded certain rural areas.

Granting CIM travelling to parks

For CIM to parks (Table 3), the model was statistically significant (χ2(21) = 639.07, P < .001, AIC = 2963.11, BIC = 3092.11, Nagelkerke R2 = 0.29, deviance = 2919.11). VIF values for all predictors were below the commonly accepted threshold of 5, indicating no significant multicollinearity (grade = 1.02, gender = 1.00, walkability = 1.03, crime prevention = 1.26, accident prevention = 1.26, education = 1.02, employment status = 1.02, partner status = 1.02, and younger siblings = 1.03). The odds of a grant were higher if the grade was higher (OR = 1.52, 95% CI [1.44, 1.61], P < .001), walkability score was higher (OR = 1.78, 95% CI [1.55, 2.03], P < .001), protection from crime was the child themselves (OR = 2.13, 95% CI [1.61, 2.83], P < .001) or a local resident (OR = 2.47, 95% CI [1.30, 4.72], P = .01), and the protection from an accident was the child themselves (OR = 1.85, 95% CI [1.39, 2.45], P < .001) or ‘not’ other adults (OR = 0.44, 95% CI [0.20, 0.97], P = .04). The odds of a grant were lower if the child was an only child (OR = 0.80, 95% CI [0.67, 0.97], P = .02).

Table 3.

Granting CIM to park (n = 2600).

Granting CIM to park Granting CIM to park with interaction terms
AIC = 2963.11, BIC = 3092.11, Nagelkerke R2 = 0.29, McFadden's R2 = 0.18, deviance = 2919.11 AIC = 2963.64, BIC = 3104.36, Nagelkerke R2 = 0.29, McFadden's R2 = 0.18, deviance = 2915.64
Confidence intervals Confidence intervals
Predictors Odds ratio (Exp(β)) Lower Upper P Odds Ratio (Exp(β)) Lower Upper P
Intercept 0.11 0.08 0.15 <.001 0.11 0.07 0.16 <.001
Grade 1.52 1.44 1.61 <.001 1.58 1.45 1.73 <.001
Girl reference: boy 0.92 0.77 1.10 .37 0.76 0.57 1.03 .07
Walkability 1.78 1.55 2.03 <.001 1.86 1.34 2.57 <.001
Protection from crime reference: guardian
Child themselves 2.13 1.61 2.83 <.001 2.14 1.61 2.84 <.001
Other adults 0.87 0.43 1.73 .68 0.87 0.44 1.73 .68
Other children 0.56 0.18 1.71 .31 0.54 0.18 1.68 .29
Local residents 2.47 1.30 4.72 .01 2.43 1.27 4.65 .01
Authorities 1.34 0.68 2.63 .40 1.33 0.68 2.60 .41
other 1.45 0.47 4.41 .52 1.51 0.50 4.58 .47
Protection from accident reference: guardian
Child themselves 1.85 1.39 2.45 <.001 1.84 1.39 2.44 <.001
Other adults 0.44 0.20 0.97 .04 0.44 0.20 0.98 .04
Other children 1.09 0.45 2.62 .86 1.10 0.46 2.65 .84
Local residents 1.28 0.61 2.65 .51 1.30 0.63 2.72 .48
Authorities 1.23 0.60 2.53 .57 1.24 0.60 2.53 .56
Other 1.17 0.37 3.67 .79 1.13 0.36 3.54 .83
Education reference: Bachelor’s
High school 1.04 0.82 1.32 .73 1.04 0.82 1.32 .73
Vocational school 1.00 0.82 1.23 1.00 0.99 0.81 1.22 .95
Employment status reference: paid work 1.12 0.93 1.37 .24 1.12 0.92 1.36 .27
Partner status reference: live with partner
Not living with partner 1.39 0.77 2.50 .27 1.38 0.77 2.48 .28
Do not have partner 1.05 0.76 1.46 .75 1.06 0.77 1.46 .74
Only child reference: younger siblings 0.80 0.67 0.97 .02 0.80 0.67 0.96 .02
Walkability * Grade 0.96 0.89 1.04 .29
Walkability * Girl reference: boy 1.23 0.95 1.60 .12
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Note: Bold font indicates statistical significance.

The inclusion of the interaction term between walkability and grade and between walkability and gender did not significantly improve the model fit compared with the main-effects-only model (χ2(2) = 3.48, P = .18), nor did it result in a lower AIC (2963.11 vs. 2963.64) or BIC (3092.11 vs. 3104.36).

Granting CIM returning from parks

The model for CIM from parks was also statistically significant (χ2(21) = 655.03, P < .001, AIC = 2992.83, BIC = 3121.83, Nagelkerke R2 = 0.30, deviance = 2948.83; Table 4). VIF values for all predictors were below the commonly accepted threshold of 5, indicating no significant multicollinearity (grade = 1.02, gender = 1.00, walkability = 1.04, crime prevention = 1.25, accident prevention = 1.25, education = 1.02, employment status = 1.02, partner status = 1.02, and younger siblings = 1.03). The odds of a grant were higher if the grade was higher (OR = 1.46, 95% CI [1.38, 1.54], P < .001), walkability score was higher (OR = 1.95, 95% CI [1.70, 2.23], P < .001), protection from crime was the child themselves (OR = 3.00, 95% CI [2.26, 3.99], P < .001) or a local resident (OR = 3.58, 95% CI [1.88, 6.83], P < .001), and if the mother was not living with the partner (OR = 2.26, 95% CI [1.25, 4.11], P = .01). The odds of a grant were lower if the child was a girl (OR = 0.79, 95% CI [0.66, 0.94], P = .01) and an only child (OR = 0.77, 95% CI [0.64, 0.93], P = .01).

Table 4.

Granting CIM from park (n = 2600).

Granting CIM from park Granting CIM from park with interaction terms
AIC = 2992.83, BIC = 3121.83, Nagelkerke R2 = 0.30, McFadden's R2 = 0.18, deviance = 2948.83 AIC = 2990.78, BIC = 3131.50, Nagelkerke R2 = 0.30, McFadden's R2 = 0.18, deviance = 2942.78
Confidence intervals Confidence intervals
Predictors Odds ratio (Exp(β)) Lower Upper P Odds ratio (Exp(β)) Lower Upper P
Intercept 0.09 0.07 0.13 <.001 0.09 0.06 0.14 <.001
Grade 1.46 1.38 1.54 <.001 1.52 1.39 1.67 <.001
Girl reference: boy 0.79 0.66 0.94 .01 0.60 0.45 0.81 <.001
Walkability 1.95 1.70 2.23 <.001 2.00 1.43 2.79 <.001
Protection from crime reference: guardian
Child themselves 3.00 2.26 3.99 <.001 3.02 2.27 4.01 <.001
Other adults 0.71 0.34 1.47 .35 0.71 0.34 1.47 .35
Other children 0.49 0.14 1.66 .25 0.47 0.14 1.61 .23
Local residents 3.58 1.88 6.83 <.001 3.52 1.84 6.71 <.001
Authorities 1.54 0.78 3.04 .21 1.52 0.77 3.00 .22
Other 0.86 0.29 2.58 .79 0.91 0.31 2.72 .87
Protection from accident reference: guardian
Child themselves 1.32 1.00 1.74 .05 1.31 0.99 1.74 .06
Other adults 0.75 0.34 1.67 .49 0.76 0.34 1.69 .50
Other children 0.40 0.14 1.11 .08 0.41 0.15 1.15 .09
Local residents 1.31 0.63 2.75 .47 1.35 0.64 2.83 .43
Authorities 1.97 0.95 4.10 .07 1.97 0.95 4.10 .07
Other 0.84 0.26 2.69 .77 0.80 0.25 2.56 .71
Education reference: Bachelor’s
High school 1.09 0.86 1.37 .49 1.09 0.86 1.37 .49
Vocational school 1.02 0.83 1.25 .87 1.01 0.82 1.23 .95
Employment status reference: paid work 1.07 0.88 1.30 .50 1.06 0.87 1.29 .56
Partner status reference: live with partner
Not living with partner 2.26 1.25 4.11 .01 2.25 1.24 4.08 .01
Do not have partner 0.97 0.70 1.34 .83 0.97 0.70 1.35 .87
Only child reference: younger siblings 0.77 0.64 0.93 .01 0.77 0.64 0.93 .01
Walkability * Grade 0.95 0.88 1.03 .24
Walkability * Girl reference: boy 1.35 1.03 1.75 .03
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Note: Bold font indicates statistical significance.

The inclusion of the interaction term between walkability and grade and between walkability and gender significantly improved the model fit compared with the main-effects-only model (χ2(2) = 6.05, P = .049). This improvement was supported by a decrease in AIC value (2992.83 vs. 2990.78); the BIC value did not decrease (3121.83 vs. 3131.50). VIF values for all predictors were also below the commonly accepted threshold of 5, indicating no significant multicollinearity (grade = 1.67, gender = 1.72, walkability = 2.53, crime prevention = 1.25, accident prevention = 1.25, education = 1.02, employment status = 1.02, partner status = 1.02, younger siblings = 1.03, walkability and grade = 2.59, and walkability and gender = 1.99). The interaction between walkability score and gender was positive and significant (OR = 1.35, 95% CI [1.03, 1.75], P = .03) indicating that the odds of a grant were more strongly influenced by the walkability score for girls than for boys.

Granting CIM within parks

The model for CIM within parks was statistically significant (χ2(21) = 691.81, P < .001, AIC = 2925.48, BIC = 3054.47, Nagelkerke R2 = 0.31, deviance = 2881.48; Table 5). VIF values for all predictors were below the commonly accepted threshold of 5, indicating no significant multicollinearity (grade = 1.02, gender = 1.00, walkability = 1.03, crime prevention = 1.20, accident prevention = 1.21, education = 1.02, employment status = 1.02, partner status = 1.02, and younger siblings = 1.03). The odds of a grant were higher if the grade was higher (OR = 1.42, 95% CI [1.34, 1.50], P < .001), walkability score was higher (OR = 1.69, 95% CI [1.48, 1.94], P < .001), protection from crime was child themselves (OR = 2.86, 95% CI [2.21, 3.71], P < .001), a local resident (OR = 3.77, 95% CI [2.24, 6.35], P < .001), or authorities (OR = 3.83, 95% CI [2.19, 6.70], P < .001), and if the protection from an accident was the child themselves (OR = 1.85, 95% CI [1.44, 2.39], P < .001).

Table 5.

Granting CIM within park (n = 2600).

Granting CIM within park Granting CIM within park with interaction terms
AIC = 2925.48, BIC = 3054.47, Nagelkerke R2 = 0.31, McFadden's R2 = 0.19, deviance = 2881.48 AIC = 2927.83, BIC = 3068.54, Nagelkerke R2 = 0.31, McFadden's R2 = 0.19, deviance = 2879.83
Confidence intervals Confidence intervals
Predictors Odds ratio (Exp(β)) Lower Upper P Odds ratio (Exp(β)) Lower Upper P
Intercept 0.12 0.09 0.16 <.001 0.11 0.07 0.17 <.001
Grade 1.42 1.34 1.50 <.001 1.47 1.34 1.60 <.001
Girl reference: boy 0.92 0.77 1.10 .38 0.83 0.61 1.11 .21
Walkability 1.69 1.48 1.94 <.001 1.82 1.30 2.54 <.001
Protection from crime reference: guardian
Child themselves 2.86 2.21 3.71 <.001 2.86 2.21 3.71 <.001
Other adults 0.89 0.47 1.66 .71 0.89 0.47 1.67 .71
Other children 1.57 0.76 3.25 .22 1.57 0.76 3.24 .23
Local residents 3.77 2.24 6.35 <.001 3.75 2.23 6.32 <.001
Authorities 3.83 2.19 6.70 <.001 3.82 2.18 6.69 <.001
Other 0.49 0.13 1.79 .28 0.51 0.14 1.86 .31
Protection from accident reference: guardian
Child themselves 1.85 1.44 2.39 <.001 1.85 1.43 2.38 <.001
Other adults 0.67 0.33 1.37 .27 0.67 0.33 1.37 .27
Other children 0.57 0.24 1.33 .19 0.58 0.25 1.35 .20
Local residents 1.36 0.73 2.55 .34 1.36 0.72 2.55 .34
Authorities 1.03 0.59 1.79 .93 1.02 0.59 1.78 .94
Other 1.85 0.48 7.15 .37 1.77 0.46 6.85 .41
Education reference: Bachelor’s
High school 1.21 0.95 1.53 .12 1.21 0.95 1.53 .12
Vocational school 1.03 0.83 1.26 .82 1.02 0.83 1.25 .85
Employment status reference: paid work 1.04 0.85 1.26 .71 1.03 0.85 1.26 .74
Partner status reference: live with partner
Not living with partner 1.43 0.79 2.59 .24 1.42 0.78 2.58 .25
Do not have partner 0.88 0.64 1.22 .44 0.88 0.64 1.22 .44
Only child reference: younger siblings 0.83 0.69 1.00 .05 0.83 0.69 1.00 .05
Walkability * Grade 0.96 0.89 1.04 .36
Walkability * Girl reference: boy 1.13 0.87 1.47 .37
Open in a new tab

Note: Bold font indicates statistical significance.

The inclusion of the interaction term between walkability and grade and between walkability and gender did not significantly improve the model fit compared with the main-effects-only model (χ2(2) = 1.65, P = .44), nor did it result in a lower AIC (2925.48 vs. 2927.83) or BIC (3054.47 vs. 3068.54).

Discussion

The objective of this study was to examine what influences CIM to/from/within nearby parks to be granted. While the majority of children played at parks, park visitation was lower among children in higher grades. Of those who visited parks, approximately half of the children were granted each type of CIM in total. The proportion of children without any granted CIM decreased as grade level increased, while the proportion with full park CIMs (i.e. all three types) rose correspondingly. When only one CIM was allowed, ‘to parks’ was most commonly granted and ‘to and within parks’ was most frequent when two CIMs were allowed. These findings suggest that children could travel to parks independently, while some adults are watching the children at a park or some adults are picking them up from a park, indicating a gradual development of CIM skills. Returning home from parks appears to be the final skill to be granted. An interview-based study in Japan (Hata 2025) observed that some children are picked up from their independently travelled destinations to control playtime and ensure a timely return. Leaving parks at an appropriate time demonstrates children's time management and self-regulation abilities. In this study, children were more likely to be granted CIM from parks if the mother was ‘not’ living with a partner. This may be due to mothers not having the necessary resources to pick up their children. Therefore, children’s maturity—not just age but various skills—and the mothers’ available resources may influence the full granting of park CIM.

The percentage of children not visiting a park increased in parallel with the percentage of children granted full park CIM, indicating that promoting park visitation may not work through CIM for older children. The decrease in park visitation among older children is consistent with an observational study conducted in Australia (Veitch et al. 2015) which found that adolescents were the smallest observed demographic group of park users. Although it is not clear why children stopped visiting parks from this study alone, previous studies suggest that older children visit parks less due to changing preferences as they grow older (Flowers et al. 2019), insufficient quality or amenities in nearby parks to attract older children (Rivera et al. 2022), or a shift towards active outdoor play in different locations such as streets or footpaths (Veitch et al. 2008). Yet in Japan, upper-grade primary school children often begin attending ‘cram’ schools and extracurricular activities (Kojima 2024), which may limit their available time for park visits. Older children may be given the grant to visit a park by their parents but may not choose or may not have the time to use that opportunity indicating that the granting of CIM by guardians does not necessarily guarantee children’s actual visitation or play at nearby parks. Furthermore, in Hino et al. (2025), higher CIM scores measured by parental permissions such as going shopping alone were associated with higher grade level but not with higher physical activity levels in Japanese primary school children. Approaches to increasing physical activity and psychological health of children through park visitation may differ depending on the reasons why children stop visiting parks. It is therefore important to better understand the relationship between park visitation and park CIM with future studies among older children.

For all park CIMs, if the child themselves were considered capable of protecting themselves from crime and accidents, the odds of being granted CIM were higher. This shows the importance of mothers’ confidence in children’s abilities concerning prevention of crimes and accidents when granting park CIMs. In addition, mothers who believed that local residents could protect their children from crime were more likely to permit CIM for all types. In Japan, local residents, including primary school Parent-Teacher Associations and senior volunteers, participate in child safety activities. These community-based child safety activities are done under a concept of ‘mimamori.’ ‘Mimamori’ is a Japanese term including in its meaning both active safeguarding and less active watches such as keeping an eye or waiting with trust without lending an unnecessary hand. The academic organization of the concept is ongoing, but it is a widely used concept in the context of community activities, usually as a softer version of surveillance (Matsumoto and Hata 2025). Recent research conducted in Japan (Zeng et al. 2025) indicates that children residing in communities with organized ‘mimamori’ activities are more likely to travel independently to school. Allocating local adults at routes to parks and at parks may help increase CIM especially for children whose mothers do not think their children are capable of protecting themselves. Additionally, children without younger siblings (i.e. only children) were less likely to be granted CIM for the journey to and from a park. Although participants in this study only had younger siblings, having a sibling may allow children to be accompanied by another child for the entire journey to and from the park.

The results imply that when children themselves are not yet able to protect themselves from harm or do not have accompaniment of a sibling who shares the same route to and from a park, local residents can be relied upon to increase CIMs, suggesting a strategic community initiative. However, it is noteworthy to add that research in Japan suggests that crime-prevention activities by community members do not reduce mothers’ concerns (Hata and Shimada 2025) and parents with crime-prevention volunteer experience are less likely to have their children independently travel to school in safe neighbourhoods (Zeng et al. 2025). ‘Mimamori’ integrated into daily lives such as ‘Plus Bouhan’ (Hino 2018) and the use of applications like the Otta Mimamoribito app (https://www.otta.me/watch/), which enables ‘mimamori’ of children by local residents in public spaces, may support parents in permitting park CIMs. In Japan, where public safety is relatively high, simply knowing that there are adults in the vicinity may make it easier to grant CIM. Further research is necessary to gain a thorough understanding of what kind of ‘mimamori’ activities conducted by local residents may contribute to increased CIM.

Authorities also played a significant role in granting CIM within parks. In Japan, some children whose guardians are working may be accompanied to local parks and supervised by staff from afterschool care facilities. The presence of these supervisors in parks may be contributing to the overall sense of safety for all children playing in the area. Also in Japan, police regularly patrol neighbourhoods as part of community safety measures. Additionally, some council have implemented systems in which the regional council is notified if a child is in danger. For instance, Shinagawa Ward in the Tokyo metropolitan area provides children with safety alarms and operates a system where, if an alarm is activated, the ward office centre is informed. In emergencies, parents, schools, police, and cooperating parties are contacted so they can respond to the child’s location (Shinagawa City 2025). While this study alone cannot establish a connection, public efforts may be contributing to park CIM in Japan.

Gender had an effect only for CIM from parks where girls were less likely to be granted the CIM, possibly more so in low walkability areas. The gender differences in CIM observed in previous studies could have been this latter part of CIM. Although this analysis focused on CIM during daylight hours, returning from a park often occurs later in the day and potentially closer to non-daylight hours. CIM in non-daylight hours differs from daylight hours. In a study with Japanese primary school children, only a small percentage were allowed to walk outside alone after dark (Hino et al. 2025). CIM in dark hours is more affected by factors such as urbanization and outdoor lighting (Litsmark et al. 2023). In the present study, higher walkability was associated with higher odds of being granted CIM for all types indicating that living in a more walkable, likely more urban, area is associated with more independence in mobility for children. This result is in line with prior studies in Japan (Hashimura et al. 2019, Hino et al. 2025), but this study also showed that the odds ratio for walkability was greatest for CIM from parks. Evenson et al. (2007) reported that neighbourhood street lighting and perceived safety contributed to non-school physical activity among girls. Lower walkability means fewer facilities and potentially less eyes on street, indicating environmental factors could be especially significant for CIM from parks for girls and enhancing the local built environment for darker hours may help address the gender discrepancies in CIM seen in some of the previous research.

Limitations

The online survey enabled us to reach participants across diverse environments with various degrees of urbanization across Japan. However, the cross-sectional design limits causal interpretation of CIM increasing park visitation. Furthermore, the quota sampling was based only on grade level and gender, which may have limited the representativeness of the sample across areas with different degrees of urbanization, hence the difference in access to parks. Future research should focus on disadvantaged areas (i.e. low walkability) to understand the reasons for not visiting parks and not granting CIM especially from parks. In the present study, we did not examine local lighting conditions or other physical environmental factors such as closeness to the park that is known to influence CIM to parks (Christian et al. 2015). These factors should be considered in future studies. Also, we did not operationally define ‘daylight hours’ by a specific time range in the questionnaire, which may have resulted in variation in how participants interpreted this term, especially around dusk, when it is neither fully dark nor fully light. For future studies on the return trip, ‘daylight hours’ should be specific.

Furthermore, CIM of the non-park-visitors was not obtained in this study. This should be addressed in future research, with a view to understanding the reasons for not visiting parks. Also, it is not uncommon for primary school students to visit parks on their own in Japan, and therefore there may be a social pressure to allow CIM. In future studies, reasons for allowing CIM should also be explored, to clarify if the social desirability influenced the decision to grant CIM. Moreover, it is important to note that further research is required to understand whether CIMs supported by ‘mimamori’ would promote the developmental benefits that CIM is intended to foster, especially when adults (local residents and authorities) are available to intervene whenever requested. Also, future studies should examine the mental and physical health of children who are granted park CIMs compared with children who are not granted park CIMs.

Lastly, we did not invite those who identified themselves as fathers to complete the survey, as in Japan, mothers are usually the ones spending more time with their children (Gender Equality Bureau Cabinet Office 2023). However, government data (Gender Equality Bureau Cabinet Office 2024) shows that the decision-making roles such as the chair of the Parent-Teacher Associations and neighbourhood associations are likely to be males, indicating that fathers could be making decisions about CIM. In future studies, both mothers and fathers should be asked to report about CIM.

Conclusion

The present study explored the park visitation and park CIMs granted to children in Japan and factors influencing a parental grant of park CIMs. This study possesses several strengths: first, it examined park visitation along with park CIMs; second, it evaluated parental permission for children's independent travel and unsupervised play at parks as different variables; third, it analysed journeys to and from parks separately, thereby providing valuable insights into the development of park CIMs. The key findings from this study are the identification of gender difference of CIM from parks and the suggestion that the presence of local residents may support park CIMs, particularly for children whose mothers do not yet perceive them as capable of protecting themselves.

The next step for future research is to identify which type of park CIM is strongly connected with the physical and/or psychological benefits of CIMs. For example, for CIM to be beneficial in terms of psychological benefits, being granted partial park CIM may be enough but for physical activity, full park CIM may need to be granted. Also, for older children, research towards approaches other than full park CIM will be needed to encourage park visitation.

Acknowledgements

We thank Prof. Toshihiko Souma, Prof. Takahito Shimada, Prof. Anna Timperio, Dr. Alethea Jerebine, and Dr. Himashini Whitley for providing valuable input in developing the questionnaire items. We also wish to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their insightful and constructive comments. TDH would like to express her sincere gratitude to Bunkyo Gakuin University for granting the sabbatical leave and to Deakin University for the generous hospitality and for providing an excellent research environment during her visit.

Contributor Information

Tomoko Doi Hata, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Human Studies, Bunkyo Gakuin University, 1196 Kamekubo, Fujimino, Saitama 356-8533, Japan; Institute for Physical Activity and Nutrition, School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood 3125, Victoria, Australia.

Tomoya Ohyama, Information Technology Center, The University of Tokyo, 2-11-16 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8658, Japan.

Jenny Veitch, Institute for Physical Activity and Nutrition, School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood 3125, Victoria, Australia.

Daisuke Takagi, Department of Social Impact Assessment and Evaluation, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Yoshida-Konoe-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan.

Author contributions

Tomoko Doi Hata (Conceptualization, Formal analysis, Investigation, Methodology, Writing—original draft, Writing —review & editing), Tomoya Ohyama (Investigation, Methodology, Writing—review & editing), Jenny Veitch (Methodology, Writing—review & editing), and Daisuke Takagi (Funding acquisition, Methodology, Project administration, Writing—review & editing)

Conflicts of interest

None declared.

Funding

This study was supported by Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI Grant Number 23K20753 and 25K00870.

Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Associated Data

This section collects any data citations, data availability statements, or supplementary materials included in this article.

Data Availability Statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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