State of Play

Methodologies for Investigating Children’s Outdoor Play and Independent Mobility

Abstract

Our research goal is to define the “playability” of local neighborhood outdoor environments for children aged 10-13 years, indicating how friendly these environments are for children’s outdoor play and independent mobility. To understand children’s actual behaviors, we used the technology of GPS and accelerometers to collect mobility and physical activity patterns among 105 children for one week. We also employed various participatory research methods to better garner children and their parents’ perceptions of their neighborhood for children’s outdoor play and independent mobility. In this paper, we describe the methodology and methods used in our research, and share pivotal lessons learned.