ArticleBMC public health2016
The Physical Activity and Redesigned Community Spaces (PARCS) Study: Protocol of a natural experiment to investigate the impact of citywide park redesign and renovation.
Article in BMC public health, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 21 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
21 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Methodologies for assessing contextual exposure to the built environment in physical activity studies: A systematic review.Health & place · 2019Pooled it
- Effectiveness of Policies and Programs to Combat Adult Obesity: a Systematic Review.Journal of general internal medicine · 2018Pooled it
- High-intensity Interval Training and Continuous Aerobic Exercise Interventions to Promote Self-initiated Quit Attempts in Young Adults Who Smoke: Feasibility, Acceptability, and Lessons Learned From a Randomized Pilot Trial.Journal of addiction medicineTrial
- Associations of Park Use with Physical Activity in Renovated Parks Serving Low-Income Communities in New York City: Insights from the Community Parks Initiative.Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities · 2025Article
- Citywide park renovations and changes in perceived stress: a quasi-experimental study among low-income communities in New York City.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Park use patterns and park satisfaction before and after citywide park renovations in low-income New York City neighborhoods.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Impact of Park Redesign and Renovation on Children's Health-Related Quality of Life.Journal of urban health : bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine · 2025Article
- Association of Park Renovation With Park Use in New York City.JAMA network open · 2024Article
- Perceived neighborhood environment walkability and health-related quality of life among predominantly Black and Latino adults in New York City.BMC public health · 2023Article
- The association of park use and park perception with quality of life using structural equation modeling.Frontiers in public health · 2023Article
- Factors associated with mask use in New York City neighborhood parks during the COVID-19 pandemic: A field audit study.Journal of infection and public health · 2022Article
- Recruitment and Retention Strategies for Community-Based Longitudinal Studies in Diverse Urban Neighborhoods.JMIR formative research · 2021Article
- It Starts with a Conversation: The Importance of Values as Building Blocks of Engagement Strategies in Community-Centered Public Health Research.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- The Role of the Physical and Social Environment in Observed and Self-Reported Park Use in Low-Income Neighborhoods in New York City.Frontiers in public health · 2021Article
- ParkIndex: Validation and application of a pragmatic measure of park access and use.Preventive medicine reports · 2020Article
- Correlates of accelerometry non-adherence in an economically disadvantaged minority urban adult population.Journal of science and medicine in sport · 2020Article
- Professionals' experiences of using an improvement programme: applying quality improvement work in preschool contexts.BMJ open quality · 2020Article
- Study of active neighborhoods in Detroit (StAND): study protocol for a natural experiment evaluating the health benefits of ecological restoration of parks.BMC public health · 2020Article
- Results from a natural experiment: initial neighbourhood investments do not change objectively-assessed physical activity, psychological distress or perceptions of the neighbourhood.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2019Article
- An Exploration of Psychosocial Pathways of Parks' Effects on Health: A Qualitative Study.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2018Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
13 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundThe built environment plays a critical role in promoting physical activity and health. The association between parks, as a key attribute of the built environment, and physical activity, however, remains inconclusive. This project leverages a natural experiment opportunity to assess the impact of the Community Parks Initiative (CPI), a citywide park redesign and renovation effort in New York City, on physical activity, park usage, psychosocial and mental health, and community wellbeing.
methodsThe project will use a longitudinal design with matched controls. Thirty intervention park neighborhoods are socio-demographically matched to 20 control park neighborhoods. The study will investigate whether improvements in physical activity, park usage, psychosocial and mental health, and community wellbeing are observed from baseline to 3 years post-renovation among residents in intervention vs. control neighborhoods. DISCUSSION: This study represents a rare opportunity to provide robust evidence to further our understanding of the complex relationship between parks and health. Findings will inform future investments in health-oriented urban design policies and offer evidence for addressing health disparities through built environment strategies.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.