Factors Parents Use in Selecting Play Spaces for Young Children

James F. Sallis

98 citations0/0 files storedArchives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine

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Urban Transport and Accessibility Physical Activity and Health Urban Green Space and Health

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The amount of time children spend in play spaces (ie, physical locations that are appropriate for children's physical activity) near their homes is correlated with their level of physical activity. OBJECTIVE: To examine factors used in parents' decisions about the selection of play spaces for their children. SUBJECTS: Parents (primarily mothers) of 178 Mexican American and 122 white children who were a mean age of 4.9 years old at the first measurement. MEASURES: In individual interviews, parents rated 24 factors on their importance in selecting for their children a play space that is away from their home or yard. Decision factors were rated from 1 (ie, not important at all) to 5 (ie, very important). RESULTS: The most important factors, with ratings ranging from 4.8 to 4.2, were safety and availability of toilets, drinking water, lighting, and shade. Mexican American parents rated 8 of 24 items significantly higher than did white parents, including lighted at night, organized activities, play supplies, and drinking water. White parents rated 5 of 24 items significantly higher than did Mexican American parents, including distance from home, cost of admission, and child's friends go there. The rated importance of 7 of 24 items increased during 1 year, including play supplies, drinking water, distance from home, and parents' friends or relatives go there. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that parents can identify factors they use in selecting places for their young children to play, and selection factors differ somewhat by ethnicity or socioeconomic status. Further studies are needed to determine whether improvements on the most important selection factors might be effective in increasing the use of play spaces by children and their parents. Clinicians may be able to use the most highly rated decision factors to help parents assess the acceptability of play spaces in their areas.

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2003Environmental correlates of walking and cycling: Findings from the transportation, urban design, and planning literatures 2005Where do children usually play? A qualitative study of parents’ perceptions of influences on children's active free-play 2004An Investigation of the Status of Outdoor Play 2005Resurrecting Free Play in Young Children 2005Contributions of leisure studies and recreation and park management research to the active living agenda 2006Measuring Physical Environments of Parks and Playgrounds: EAPRS Instrument Development and Inter-Rater Reliability 2008Neighborhood social cohesion and youth participation in physical activity in Chicago 2007Children's Perceptions of the Use of Public Open Spaces for Active Free-play

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