Individual, social and physical environmental influences on children’s active transport and independent mobility: The AIM study

Active transport (active modes of transportation such as walking or cycling) is an important source of physical activity and contributes to health and wellbeing; however Australian children’s participation has declined recently. In light of the childhood obesity epidemic, interventions aiming to increase active transport are urgently needed, particularly for children living in rural or disadvantaged areas who may have increased risk of inactivity and poor health. However, evidence to inform such interventions is lacking for these groups. This study will examine changes in, and individual, social and physical environmental influences on, children’s active transport and independent mobility.

This will be one of the first studies internationally to examine children’s active transport and independent mobility using a longitudinal study design. The proposed study will value-add to an existing longitudinal study known as READI (Resilience to Eating and Inactivity Despite Inequality).