Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28784183›Full record

SynthesisThe international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity2017

Built environmental correlates of older adults' total physical activity and walking: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

David W Barnett, Anthony Barnett, Andrea Nathan, Jelle Van Cauwenberg, Ester Cerin, Council on Environment and Physical Activity (CEPA) – Older Adults working group

Open access · goldAbstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 330 papers, 18 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
330citing papers in PubMed, 18 pooled it
126.7field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

330 citing papers in PubMed, 18 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 792 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Quality of Urban Green Space for Older Adults to Promote Physical Activity: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026
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  12. Determinants of physical activity in community-dwelling older adults: an umbrella review.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2023
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  13. The Effect of Human Settlement Pedestrian Environment on Gait of Older People: An Umbrella Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023
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  14. The neighbourhood built environment and health-related fitness: a narrative systematic review.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2022
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  17. Built environment interventions and physical activity levels: A systematic review.Biomedica : revista del Instituto Nacional de Salud · 2022
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270 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.

David W BarnettInstitute for Health and Ageing, Australian Catholic University, Level 6, 215 Spring Street, Melbourne, VIC, 3000, Australia.
Anthony BarnettInstitute for Health and Ageing, Australian Catholic University, Level 6, 215 Spring Street, Melbourne, VIC, 3000, Australia.
Andrea NathanInstitute for Health and Ageing, Australian Catholic University, Level 6, 215 Spring Street, Melbourne, VIC, 3000, Australia.
Jelle Van CauwenbergDepartment of Public Health, Ghent University, De Pintelaan 185, 9000, Ghent, Belgium.
Ester CerinInstitute for Health and Ageing, Australian Catholic University, Level 6, 215 Spring Street, Melbourne, VIC, 3000, Australia. ester.cerin@acu.edu.au.ORCID 0000-0002-7599-165X
Council on Environment and Physical Activity (CEPA) – Older Adults working group
Australian Catholic University · AUBaker Heart and Diabetes Institute · AUGhent University Hospital · BE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundIdentifying attributes of the built environment associated with health-enhancing levels of physical activity (PA) in older adults (≥65 years old) has the potential to inform interventions supporting healthy and active ageing. The aim of this study was to first systematically review and quantify findings on built environmental correlates of older adults' PA, and second, investigate differences by type of PA and environmental attribute measurement.

methodsOne hundred articles from peer-reviewed and grey literature examining built environmental attributes related to total PA met inclusion criteria and relevant information was extracted. Findings were meta-analysed and weighted by article quality and sample size and then stratified by PA and environmental measurement method. Associations (p < .05) were found in relation to 26 individual built environmental attributes across six categories (walkability, residential density/urbanisation, street connectivity, access to/availability of destinations and services, infrastructure and streetscape, and safety) and total PA and walking specifically. Reported individual- and environmental-level moderators were also examined.

resultsPositive environmental correlates of PA, ranked by strength of evidence, were: walkability (p < .001), safety from crime (p < .001), overall access to destinations and services (p < .001), recreational facilities (p < .001), parks/public open space (p = .002) and shops/commercial destinations (p = .006), greenery and aesthetically pleasing scenery (p = .004), walk-friendly infrastructure (p = .009), and access to public transport (p = .016). There were 26 individual differences in the number of significant associations when the type of PA and environmental measurement method was considered. No consistent moderating effects on the association between built environmental attributes and PA were found.

conclusionsSafe, walkable, and aesthetically pleasing neighbourhoods, with access to overall and specific destinations and services positively influenced older adults' PA participation. However, when considering the environmental attributes that were sufficiently studied (i.e., in ≥5 separate findings), the strength of evidence of associations of specific categories of environment attributes with PA differed across PA and environmental measurement types. Future research should be mindful of these differences in findings and identify the underlying mechanisms. Higher quality research is also needed.

Indexed as

Environment DesignExerciseHealth PromotionWalkingAccelerometryAgedGeriatric AssessmentHumansResidence CharacteristicsSafetySample SizeUrbanizationBuilt environmentCorrelatesMeta-analysisOlder adultsPhysical activitySystematic reviewWalking

Identifiers

PMID28784183
PMCPMC5547528
OpenAlexW2745012473

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.