Research Design Connection: Walkable Zones Near Workplaces

by Sally Augustin, Ph.D. | December 3rd, 2018

Marquet and colleagues link working in a walkable area and employee physical activity. As they report, via a study of employed women with an average age of 53 “wearing a GPS device and accelerometer on the hip for 7 days…[they determined that] working in high walkable environments was associated with higher levels of moderate to vigorous physical activity while at work, and with higher moderate to vigorous physical activity gained within the work neighborhood. Increasing walkability levels around workplaces can contribute to increasing physical activity of employees…this study used objective measures of the environment and accelerometer-measured PA [physical activity] to find that walkability around the workplace is associated with higher amounts of MVPA [moderate to vigorous physical activity] gained in the workplace and within the workplace neighborhood.” Oriol Marquet, Myron Floyd, Peter James, Karen Glanz, Viniece Jennings, Marta Jankowska, Jacqueline Kerr and Aaron Hipp. “Associations Between Worksite Walkability, Greenness, and …