Associations between Perceptions and Measures of Weather and Walking, United States—2015

Susan A. Carlson, Geoffrey P. Whitfield, Ryan T. Davis, Erin L. Peterson, Janet E. Fulton and David Berrigan
Additional contact information
Susan A. Carlson: National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30341, USA
Geoffrey P. Whitfield: National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30341, USA
Ryan T. Davis: Geospatial Research, Analysis, and Services Program, Division of Toxicology and Human Health Sciences, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA 30341, USA
Erin L. Peterson: National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30341, USA
Janet E. Fulton: National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30341, USA
David Berrigan: Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 16, 1-13

Abstract: Introduction: Weather can be a barrier to walking. Understanding how perceptions of weather as a barrier and measured temperature are associated with walking can inform monitoring and promotion strategies. The objective of this study is to examine the association between perceptions of weather as a barrier to walking and measured weather with the volume of leisure and transportation walking. Methods: The 2015 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) assessed participation in and volume of walking (transportation, leisure) in the past week and frequency of reporting weather as a barrier to walking. Data were collected over the entire year. In 2019, we merged month-specific temperature data from the PRISM climate group with individual NHIS records. We examined associations using logistic (participation) and linear regression models (volume). Results: Participation in walking increased as frequency of reporting weather as a barrier to walking decreased, from ‘almost always’ (transportation: 23%, leisure: 42%) to ‘a little of the time’ (transportation: 40%, leisure: 67%). Among adults reporting walking, walking volume increased as frequency of reporting weather as a barrier decreased from ‘almost always’ (transportation: 51 min/week, leisure: 64 min/week) to ‘never’ (transportation: 69 min/week, leisure: 98 min/week). Month-specific temperature was significantly associated with leisure walking with lower participation at the lowest and highest temperature quintiles, although the strength of the association differed by frequency of reporting weather as a barrier. Conclusions: In general, prevalence and volume of leisure and transportation walking decreased as the perception of weather as a barrier increased. Low and high temperature conditions were also associated with leisure walking participation, particularly among adults with increased perceptions of weather as a barrier. Our findings highlight the importance of including strategies to help adults overcome perceived and actual weather-related barriers in walking promotion efforts.

Keywords: walking; physical activity; weather; temperature; humidity; perceptions; perceived barriers; leisure; transportation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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