Trends in active commuting to school from 2003 to 2017 among children and adolescents from Germany: the MoMo Study

Active Commuting to School among Spanish Preschool Children: A Temporal Change Study between 2013 and 2017

BACKGROUND

Active commuting to school may increase the total daily physical activity and achieve health benefits among preschool children. Rates of active commuting to school among Spanish children and adolescents have been widely analysed, while the rates of active commuting to school among Spanish preschool children are unknown.

AIM

The main objective of this study was to examine the changes in the rates of active commuting to school in a sample of Spanish preschool children between 3 and 6 years old from 2013 to 2017.

METHODS

Data were found from five studies carried out across Spain. The study sample comprised 4787 preschool children (4.59 ± 0.77 years old; 51% males). The overall changes in active commuting to school were assessed using multilevel logistic regression analysis.

RESULTS

The rates of active commuting to school in Spanish preschool children are around 52%, and the active commuting to school rates have stayed stable throughout the period assessed (odds ratio from 0.40 to 0.58, all p > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

In preschool children, the present study obtained a favourable result on active commuting to school, showing a pattern stability in the examined period similar to other ages. It will be of great importance to promote this behaviour to obtain high levels of active commuting to school.

How do adolescents experience the decision-making process on travel mode choice?

Active travel can contribute to multiple health benefits in youth. Previous research has identified several factors influencing travel behavior. This study investigates how adolescents process these factors during their decision-making process on travel mode choice. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 adolescents (11-14 years) and analysed using deductive-inductive thematic analysis. Four themes were generated from which the decision-making process on mode choice was conceptualized according to adolescents. The step-by-step process in which travel mode options were gradually reduced, was dependent on the context (Theme 1), the perceived availability of travel mode choice options, which was influenced by factors beyond the individual's perceived control (Theme 2), and on adolescents' pros/cons assessment to identify the most convenient option. Adolescents' habitually used travel mode influenced the decision at several stages throughout the process (Theme 4). To promote healthy travel behaviors, interventions should consider contextual circumstances, balance between enabling autonomous choices and promoting advantages of active travel modes, address individual travel modes and include practices that foster conscious processing of decision-making.

Parental perspectives on the decision-making process on transport mode choice in adolescents: a qualitative study with mothers and fathers

Objective

The present study aims to understand the familial decision-making process on transport mode choice in adolescents with a focus on the parental perspective within this process.

Background

Active travel contributes to adolescents' overall physical activity and its positive health effects. Based on the social-learning theory, especially parents are assigned a central role for adolescents' travel behavior. The aim of the present study was to examine how parents are involved in the decision-making process on transport mode choice in adolescents.

Method

The study is part of the cross-sectional mixed-methods ARRIVE study which includes semi-structured interviews with mothers (n = 12) and fathers (n = 7) of 11- to 14-year-old German adolescents. The interviews focused on travel behavior in adolescents and the decision-making process on transport mode choice from the parental perspective. All interviews were analyzed inductively using Thematic Analysis.

Results

Our study revealed that parents do not primarily decide for or against active travel in adolescents, but are mostly involved in the decision-making process, especially in case of a deviation from the main transport mode. Different forms of parental involvement in the decision-making process were identified. Some parents acted as main decision makers which is the highest form of involvement while others gave their children complete freedom of choose a transport mode for themselves. These parents accepted their child's choice fully which shows a low involvement in the decision-making process.

Conclusion

The results provide a deeper understanding of the familial decision-making process on travel behavior in adolescents. The results indicate an occasionally parental involvement in the decision-making process on the mainly used transport mode by adolescents, and that mothers and fathers are always involved when deviating from the main mode.

Implications

Further research should investigate changes in travel behavior from childhood to young adulthood to understand long-term travel decisions in families. Due to the findings that parents are often involved in the decision-making process on transport mode choice and that they mainly reported safety concerns as barriers to their children's active travel, further research should focus especially on the social and physical environment of adolescents.

Gender-specific social and environmental correlates of active travel to school in four European countries: the HBSC Study

Introduction

Despite the health benefits, a large proportion of girls and boys in Europe do not travel to school actively. A better understanding of the correlates associated with this behavior could guide interventions. This study examines perceived social and environmental correlates of active travel to school (ACTS) from the 2017/18 Health Behavior in School-Aged Children (HBSC) survey in four European countries, with a special emphasis on gender differences (n = 22,023).

Methods

Logistic regression was conducted to analyze associations between the perceived importance of each correlate and ACTS behavior for 11-, 13-, and 15-year-old girls and boys from Germany, Czechia, Poland, and Slovakia. All models were adjusted for age, family affluence, and meeting World Health Organization recommendations for moderate-to-vigorous physical activity.

Results

Rates of ACTS significantly differed between girls and boys. In Czechia, 65% of girls and boys traveled to school actively, followed by Slovakia (61.4% girls and 58.4% boys), Poland (57.7% girls and 60.2% boys), and Germany (42.6% girls and 48.6% boys). Girls were less likely to actively travel to school compared to boys (odds ratio [OR]: 0.92, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.87-0.97). Increasing age (OR: 0.95, 95% CI: 0.93-0.97) and a greater distance to school index (OR: 0.89, 95% CI: 0.88-0.90) were both negatively associated with ACTS. The perceived importance of living closer to school and of road and neighborhood safety was positively associated with ACTS, with a stronger association in boys than in girls for neighborhood safety. On the contrary, the perceived importance of having people to walk with was negatively associated with ACTS, with a stronger association in girls (OR: 0.74, 95% CI: 0.65-0.84) than in boys (OR: 0.77, 95% CI: 0.66-0.88).

Discussion

This study provides insights into perceived social and environmental correlates associated with ACTS behavior. Future research should include gender-specific perceptions and more in-depth investigations of correlates encouraging ACTS, especially considering social aspects, safety issues, and the structuring of the environment in different cultural settings.

Active school transport routines during school transitions: Socio-structural predictors of changes from childhood into early adulthood

The purpose of this study is to investigate socio-structural predictors of active school transport (AST) change and to explore the stability and changes of transport modes during school transitions and into early adulthood in Germany. School transport mode, urbanicity level, socioeconomic status, and migration background were assessed in 624 children (8.9 ± 1.1 years, 51% female) and 444 adolescents (14.9 ± 1.7 years, 48% female) which were followed up longitudinally six years later. The results of multinomial logistic regressions and transition probability calculations indicated that residing outside of rural areas at baseline and follow-up predicts retaining or switching to AST in adolescence. Similarly, higher socioeconomic status at baseline predicted retaining or switching to AST in early adulthood. This research suggests that transition periods are crucial understanding AST behavior and may provide new opportunities for tailored AST promotion programs for different age groups.

Active school transport in an urban environment:prevalence and perceived barriers

BACKGROUND

Active school transport (AST) can increase children's and adolescents' physical activity. The proportion of children and adolescents who engage in AST has declined internationally in recent decades. This study examines the prevalence, correlates, and perceived barriers to AST in the city of Leipzig, Germany.

METHODS

The study sample includes 1070 participants, 364 children and 706 adolescents, aged between 6 and 18 years, as well as their parents. The parents as well as adolescents age 10 and above completed questionnaires concerning sociodemographic variables, means of transport/AST and perceived barriers to AST. The distance between home and school was calculated as the network distance from the home to school address using the Dijkstra algorithm. Based on these data, logistic models were fitted in a two-step variable selection process, using AST as the dependent variable.

RESULTS

Approximately half of the children (59%) and adolescents (51%) engaged in AST. The prevalence of AST exhibited a negative correlation with age (Odds Ratio (OR) = 0.94, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.9-0.99, p = 0.015) and did not significantly differ by gender (children: OR_girls = 1.5, CI = 0.95-2.25, p = 0.075, adolescents: OR_girls = 1.01, CI = 0.75-1.37, p = 0.924). A high socioeconomic status was positively correlated to AST on the morning trip (OR = 1.7, CI 1.3-2.21, p < 0.01) but negatively on the afternoon trip (OR = 0.7, CI = 0.53-0.9, p < 0.01) in the summer. Common barriers for children (from their parents' perspective) and for adolescents (from their own and their parents' perspective) were distance and a heavy load to carry. The parents of adolescents did not perceive any other specific barriers as a serious impediment. Further significant barriers perceived by the younger children's parents were adults giving a lift on the way to other errands, no other children to walk or cycle with, and too much traffic. Too much traffic was also a significant barrier for adolescents, as were taking too much time and bad weather conditions.

CONCLUSIONS

Future interventions promoting AST in an urban environment should be guided by the identified perceived barriers.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

LIFE Child has been retrospectively registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02550236).

Motivation and Basic Psychological Needs Satisfaction in Active Travel to Different Destinations: A Cluster Analysis with Adolescents Living in Germany

Active travel in adolescence contributes to improved health outcomes. Self-Determination Theory suggests that motivation and basic psychological needs influence travel behavior. Person-centered approaches can examine interrelationships of these constructs underlying travel behavior. The aim of this study was to investigate (i) which clusters can be identified in adolescents, (ii) whether clusters explain overall active travel behavior, (iii) whether clusters were associated with travel mode to various destinations or distance, and (iv) whether differences across clusters appear regarding sex/gender, age, and weight status. The sample included 517 (263 male, 254 female) adolescents from Germany, aged 11-15. Self-organizing maps analysis identified six clusters from nine input variables: intrinsic motivation, integrated regulation, identified regulation, introjected regulation, external regulation, amotivation, autonomy satisfaction, competence satisfaction, and relatedness satisfaction. The most beneficial cluster regarding active travel demonstrated highest basic psychological needs satisfaction and autonomous motivation with low controlled motivation and amotivation. The most vulnerable cluster was characterized by generally low levels of motivation except for external regulation and amotivation. Clusters were not associated with distance to school, friends/relatives, shopping facilities, or leisure facilities. The findings support the importance of high quality and high quantity of motivation for active travel in adolescents.

Associations of parents' and adolescents' active travel behavior across various destinations - a sex/gender analysis

BACKGROUND

Active travel behavior such as walking and cycling is associated with several health benefits. Especially the family environment seems to be important for active travel in children and adolescents. Currently, little is known regarding travel behavior in leisure time and associations of travel behavior within parent-adolescent dyads.

METHODS

The present analysis is based on the German ARRIVE study (Active tRavel behavioR in the famIly enVironmEnt), which incorporated a large scale, representative cross-sectional online survey including 517 parent-child dyads consisting of adolescents (N = 517; boys = 263, girls = 254) aged 11-15 years and one of their parents (N = 517; fathers = 259, mothers = 258). Based on that survey which took place in June 2021 (during the COVID-19 pandemic), we calculated the prevalence of active travel to four commonly visited destinations (school/work, friends/relatives, shopping stores and recreational activities) using an adapted version of the travel to school questionnaire by Segura-Diaz JM, Rojas-Jimenez A, Barranco-Ruiz Y, Murillo-Pardo B, Saucedo-Araujo RG, Aranda-Balboa MJ, et al. (Int J Environ Res Public Health 17(14), 2020). In addition, we investigated the associations between parents' and adolescents' travel behavior using scores for school/work, leisure time (friends/relatives, shopping stores and recreational activities) and overall (school/work and leisure time).

RESULTS

Across all destinations, prevalence of active travel in adolescents (63.08%) was higher than in parents (29.21%). Active travel to school (47.33%) as well as to work (20.43%) indicated the lowest prevalence. Linear regression models revealed significant associations in overall active travel between mothers and adolescents (girls: β = 0.308, p < 0.001; boys: β = 0.302, p = 0.001) and in leisure time active travel behavior between mothers and daughters (β = 0.316, p < 0.001). Related to school/work active travel there were no associations between parents and adolescents.

CONCLUSION

The associations between adolescents' and parents' travel behavior differ depending on gender: they are solely seen in mother-adolescents dyads. Furthermore, our findings conclude that travel is a routine and independent of the destination.

Active school commuting in adolescents from 28 countries across Africa, the Americas, and Asia: a temporal trends study

BACKGROUND

Evidence examining trends in active school commuting among adolescents are mainly single-country studies, and principally focused on high-income countries. Thus, the present study aims to examine temporal trends in adolescents' active school commuting and to examine if there are differences in such trends by sex. We used nationally representative samples of 28 countries, which were predominantly low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), covering 5 different WHO regions.

METHODS

Data from the Global School-based Student Health Survey 2004-2017 were analyzed in 177,616 adolescents [mean (SD) age: 13.7 (1.0) years; 50.7% girls]. Active school commuting was self-reported (frequency of walking or riding a bike to and from school in the past 7 days). The prevalence and 95%CI of active school commuting (i.e., ≥ 3 days/week) was calculated for the overall sample and by sex for each survey. Crude linear trends in active school commuting were assessed by linear regression models. Interaction analyses were conducted to examine differing trends among boys and girls.

RESULTS

Trends in active school commuting were heterogeneous across countries, with results showing stable patterns for the majority (16/28), decreasing trends for some (7/28) and increasing trends over time for a few (5/28). The majority of countries showed no differences in active school commuting trends between girls and boys.

CONCLUSIONS

The quantification of changes in adolescents' active school commuting over time, together with a deeper understanding of local determinants for such behaviors will provide valuable evidence to inform the development of tailored and context-specific actions.

Compensation of overall physical activity in (pre)adolescent girls - the CReActivity project

BACKGROUND

According to the ActivityStat hypothesis more physical activity (PA) in one timespan is compensated by increased sedentary time (ST) in the following timespan and vice versa to maintain an overall stable PA level. Until now, existing literature revealed inconsistent results regarding compensatory behaviour across children and adolescents. Thus, the aim of the present study is (1) to investigate whether ST in the morning is compensated by active behaviour in the afternoon and (2) whether ST during the week is compensated by active behaviour during the weekend in (pre)adolescent girls. Additionally, we aimed to differentiate between positive and negative compensatory behaviour and examine whether it is moderated by socioeconomic status (SES), age or weight status.

METHODS

The participants were 370 sixth grade school girls (mean age 11.6 years) from Munich that participated in the CReActivity study, a school based intervention study aiming to identify the mechanisms of behavioural changes in PA among girls. ST and PA were measured over seven consecutive days using accelerometery. Descriptive determination of compensatory behaviour, as well as Bayesian multivariate multilevel analysis were conducted with data clustered on the individual (ID), class and school level.

RESULTS

Descriptive analysis revealed rather constant compensatory behaviour of about 60% for after-school days and weekends over all observation points. However, regarding all girls, compensation was predominantly negative. Differentiated analysis indicated that all girls with low ST levels in the morning or on weekdays, compensated for this behaviour with lower PA levels in the afternoon or on weekends. Multilevel covariate analysis indicated great variability between the participants. Furthermore, differences in compensatory behaviour can also be seen on class and school levels. Interestingly, PA compensatory behaviour is not associated with age, weight status or SES.

CONCLUSION

Our findings could neither confirm nor reject the ActivityStat Hypothesis. Overall, due to the great variability across the girls, it seems that compensation depends on individual factors. In the future, to prevent negative compensation, school-based interventions that have the potential to provide opportunities to be physically active, should not neglect (pre)adolescents' leisure time behaviour.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

DRKS00015723 (date of registration: 2018/10/22 retrospectively registered).

Psychosocial and environmental determinants of active transport to school in Austrian rural communities: a cross-sectional study among schoolchildren and their parents

Background

Active transport to school (ATS) is an effective health-promoting intervention to integrate physical activity into children’s everyday lives. While previous studies have examined environmental and behavioural determinants on ATS in urban areas, evidence on rural areas is rare.

Method

This study examined whether environmental and psychosocial characteristics are associated with ATS in two rural communities in Austria. Participants from four schools (two primary / two secondary schools) returned a self-reported questionnaire on individual and environmental determinants of ATS consisting of one section for parents and one for children, with 382 of the 467 total responses being included in the analysis.

Results

Bivariate analyses showed a significant association of psychosocial characteristics of parents and children (intention, attitude, social norm, perceived behavioural control: p < 0.001), one environmental item (walking and cycling network: p ≤ 0.001) as well as distance and duration for walking to/from school between ATS. In a multiple regression model, the chances of participating in ATS were higher among children who have higher perceived behavioural control, walk between 5 to 10 minutes to school, and whose parents have a higher commitment to ATS.

Conclusions

Future initiatives to enhance ATS in rural areas should focus on the control beliefs of parents and children, and should involve parents in order to increase parents’ commitment to ATS. Additionally, measures should explore the effects of active transport promotion in the context of public transport and school buses. Above all, further opportunities for ATS should be considered in spatial and community planning.

Changes in Active Behaviours, Physical Activity, Sedentary Time, and Physical Fitness in Chilean Parents during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Retrospective Study

Strategies to reduce the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have caused different behavioural modifications in all populations. Therefore, this study aimed to determine changes in active commuting, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), physical fitness, and sedentary time during the COVID-19 pandemic in Chilean parents. Eighty-six fathers (41.30 ± 6.82 years) and 294 mothers (40.68 ± 6.92 years) of children from different schools from Valparaíso, Chile, participated. Inclusion criteria were adults with schoolchildren who were resident in Chile during the research period. Convenience sampling was used as a non-probabilistic sampling technique. Respondents completed a self-reported online survey about active commuting, MVPA, self-perceived physical fitness, and sedentary time July–September 2020 during the first pandemic period. Comparisons between before and during the pandemic were performed using t-tests and covariance analysis (ANCOVA), establishing a significance level at p < 0.05. Most participants stayed at home during the pandemic, whereas active and passive commuting significantly decreased in both fathers and mothers (p < 0.001). MVPA and physical fitness scores reduced considerably (p < 0.05), while sedentary time significantly increased (p < 0.05), independent of the sex of parents and children’s school type. Differences by age groups and the number of children were more heterogeneous, as younger parents showed a larger decrease in MVPA (p < 0.05) and physical fitness score (p < 0.05). Additionally, parents with one child showed a larger decrease in sedentary time (p < 0.05) than those with two or more children. The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected healthy behaviours. Hence, health policies should promote more strategies to mitigate the long-term health effects of the pandemic on Chilean parents.

Active travel behaviour in the family environment: protocol for the mixed-methods cross-sectional ARRIVE study

INTRODUCTION

Active travel is an important source of physical activity and a primary contributor to overall health among adolescents. To understand and promote active travel behaviour in adolescents, developing a more robust understanding of the predictors of active travel and its associated decision-making processes is needed. Situated within a theoretical socioecological framework for adolescent travel behaviour, the mixed-methods Active tRavel behavioR in the famIly enVironmEnt study aims to quantitatively assess the influence of several predictors of adolescent travel behaviour, and to qualitatively understand the associated decision-making processes of both adolescents and parents.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

Our mixed-methods approach will feature online surveys and semistructured interviews. The online questionnaire, developed in accordance with a theoretical framework of adolescent active travel, will examine adolescent travel behaviour with respect to four different destinations while controlling for multiple relevant individual, social and physical environment factors. To enable the comparison of adolescent and parental perspectives, the questionnaire will be answered by a representative sample of German adolescents (11-15 years old) and their parents.Our semistructured interviews, likewise framed based on the central tenets of the theoretical framework of adolescent active travel, will seek to explore the decision-making process of families regarding travel mode choice via conducting interviews with each member (ie, father, mother, adolescent). To investigate travel decision-making processes, adolescents and their parents will be invited to talk about trips they undertook using both active and passive transport modes during the last week. Thematic analyses will be conducted to highlight the central concerns, priorities and values of participants' decision-making processes.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

This study has received ethical approval from the ethics commission of the Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg. Study results will be disseminated at scientific conferences and published in peer-reviewed journals. Additionally, study findings will be made publicly available to relevant health, policy, and research stakeholders and groups.

Study Protocol of a School-Based Randomized Controlled Trial to Promote Cycling to School Among Students in Germany Using Intervention Mapping: The ACTS Project

Background: Despite a high rate of bicycle ownership, the prevalence of cycling to school among children and adolescents in Germany has been constantly low. Cycling to school can contribute to meeting the physical activity recommendations, which the majority of children and adolescents in Germany do not meet.

Methods: By using intervention mapping, this study protocol describes the systematic planning process of a school-based intervention in Germany aimed to increase the number of days on which students cycle to school and to increase their physical activity levels. To make sure that the intervention will match the needs of students, we conducted a concept mapping study investigating what students need to cycle to school, as perceived by students, parents, and teachers. The logic model of change was based on an integration of the self–determination theory and the social–ecological model. We structured our intervention as two phases, a preparatory phase with weekly components for and a practical phase with a daily repeated component of the targeted behavior. In the 8-week preparatory phase, teachers, parents, and peers will be involved. The content of the 12-week practical phase will involve peers only and was considered promising based on the findings from a systematic review that we conducted to identify the effective strategies of school-based interventions to promote cycling to school among children and adolescents. Overall, our intervention includes 27 behavior change techniques. A researcher, student assistants, teachers, and other collaborators will implement the intervention; a whole-of-school approach with components performed before, during, and after school was chosen. As a study design, we decided to draft a two-arm three-level cluster randomized controlled trial. Both the effect and process evaluation were prepared. In the first instance, approximately 250 students of 12–15 years of age from grade 7 or 8, who attend a secondary school of intermediate or high educational level located in (sub)urban regions in Southern Germany, will pilot the intervention.

Discussion: We expect to provide an effective and sustainable intervention for students, which gives insights into the mechanisms of change concerning the behavior of cycling to school and its influence on physical activity levels.

12-Year Trends in Active School Transport across Four European Countries-Findings from the Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) Study

Active school transport (AST) is a source of daily physical activity uptake. However, AST seems to have decreased worldwide over recent decades. We aimed to examine recent trends in AST and associations with gender, age, family affluence, and time to school, using data from the Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) study collected in 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2018 in the Czech Republic, Norway, Scotland, and Wales. Data from 88,212 students (11, 13 and 15 years old) revealed stable patterns of AST from 2006 to 2018, apart from a decrease in the Czech Republic between 2006 and 2010. For survey waves combined, walking to and from school was most common in the Czech Republic (55%) and least common in Wales (30%). Cycling was only common in Norway (22%). AST differed by gender (Scotland and Wales), by age (Norway), and by family affluence (everywhere but Norway). In the Czech Republic, family affluence was associated with change over time in AST, and the effect of travel time on AST was stronger. The findings indicate that the decrease in AST could be levelling off in the countries considered here. Differential associations with sociodemographic factors and travel time should be considered in the development of strategies for AST.

Socio-Demographic Correlates of Cycling to School among 12- to 15-Year Olds in Southern Germany

Depending on the region and urbanization level, the rate of cycling to school in Germany varies largely. The influence of distance from home to school, educational level, the school’s region, and parents’ socio-demographic characteristics on cycling to secondary school in Germany is unclear. Therefore, this study analyzed students’ and parents’ socio-demographic correlates of cycling to school, including separate analyses by gender, among 12- to 15-year-olds attending different (sub)urban schools in Southern Germany. In 2019, 121 students (girls: 40.5%, boys: 59.5%) aged 13.1 ± 0.9 and 42 parents (mothers: 81%, fathers: 19%) aged 47.8 ± 5.5 participated. Students completed a self-report questionnaire; parents completed a self- and proxy-report questionnaire. In total, between 61.7% and 67.5% of students sometimes cycled to school. Binary logistic regressions revealed that being a girl, increasing age, attending an intermediate educational level combined with a suburban school region (small or medium-sized town), increasing distance from home to school, and having parents who did not cycle to work led to declining odds of cycling to school. Many 12- to 15-year-olds sometimes cycled to school in (sub)urban school regions in Southern Germany. As several socio-demographic characteristics correlated with cycling to school, this should be considered when developing a future school-based bicycle intervention.