Table 2.

Environmental influences on physical activity behaviour

Domains	Examples of factors that affect physical activity
Macro-environment	Population density
	Degree of urbanization
	Pollution
	Coastal location/access to beach
	Weather – temperature/rain
Policy/Legislation/Media	Urban planning policies
	Policies or zoning ordinances requiring parks/walkways/bike paths
	Policies requiring incorporation of facilities for physical activity
	Pollution/emissions control policies — e.g. acceptance of the Kyoto protocol
	Road residential safety legislation
	Public spending on roads/public transport
	Public spending on recreation facilities/green space
	Government/National body guidelines on physical activity
	School physical activity guidelines/programs
Societal and cultural norms	Car ownership
	TV ownership
	Cultural/ethnicity influences
Neighbourhood environment	Objective measures
‘Walkability’	Availability and access to public transportation
	Cost of public transport vs cost of running a car
	Availability and access to recreational facilities, parks, sports grounds
	Pedestrian only areas
	Slope of streets
	Urban planning, e.g. connectivity of areas, number of intersections
	Architecture/building planning of work place to encourage walking
	Crime rate
	Sidewalks/foot-paths/cycling lanes/safe street crossings
	Street lighting
	Speed limits
	Land use mix — residential/retail/civic
	Presence of grass/flowers/trees/public art/interesting features
	Perception measures
	Perceived safety of area from traffic
	Perceived safety of area from crime
	Perceived convenience of walking to local essential services
	Perceived attractiveness/overall satisfaction with quality of neighbourhood