Table 1.

Hierarchical distribution of predictors

Hierarchy	Type of measures	Examples of derived variables	Instrument
Neighbourhood level variables	Urban design	Grid-pattern Fractured grid-pattern Curvilinear	Urban Planning
	Built environment	Diversity of destinations Density of destinations Safety from traffic Safety from crime Attractiveness Pedestrian access Universal accessibility Activity friendliness	Observation Tools: Neighbourhood Active Living Potential and Irvine Minnesota Inventory
	Neighbourhood social environment	Dwelling value Dwellings per acre Household income	2006 Statistics Canada Census and G5 2010 Census Projections
Individual level variables	Children's perception of household, neighbourhood, peer and parental factors	Transportation support from family Peer support to walk or bike Household socioeconomic status Parents’ education	Smart Cities Healthy Kids Questionnaire
	Activity measures	Moderate to vigorous physical activity Light physical activity Sedentary behaviour	Accelerometry

Data obtained from built environment tools, census data and the smart cities healthy kids questionnaire were utilised to derive variables which were distributed on a numerical scale specific to each measure. Thereafter, exploration of each variable's distribution was conducted; all variables were converted into categorical variables by uniformly dichotomising each variable's scale at the 50th centile.