Physical activity patterns in urban neighbourhood parks: insights from a multiple case study

BMC Public Health

Table 3 Proportion (%) of park users by different socio-demographic characteristics and usage patterns in the four study locations

Characteristics	Taradale (a) (n = 167 observed)%	Martindale (b) (n = 184 observed)%	West Hillhurst (c) (n = 227 observed)%	Meadowlark (d) (n = 205 observed)%
Gender
Female	35.3	38.6	44.8	42.4
Male	64.7	61.4	53.7	57.6
Unknown**	0.0	0.0	1.3	0.0
Age group*
Child/teenager	23.4^{b, c, d}	58.7^{a, c, d}	35.7^{a, b}	33.2^{a, b}
Adult	76.6	41.3	64.3	66.8
Group (other people)*
Alone	46.7^c	42.9^c	36.1^{a, b, d}	50.2^c
With another person	53.3	57.1	63.9	49.8
Time of day*
Morning (8:30-12:30)	27.5^{b, c}	17.9^{a, c, d}	49.1^{a, b, d}	29.8^{b, c}
Afternoon (14:30-18:30)	72.5	82.1	50.9	70.2
Day of week*
Weekday	31.1^b	44.0^{a, d}	35.2^d	24.4^{b, c}
Saturday	24.0^{c, d}	25.5^{c, d}	37.8^{a, b, d}	48.3^{a, b, c}
Sunday	44.9^{b, c, d}	30.4^a	27.0^a	27.3^a
Activity type inside park*
Sedentary	1.8^{c, d}	1.1^{c, d}	15.9^{a, b, d}	11.2^{a, b, c}
Walking	28.1^{b, c, d}	42.4^{a, c, d}	7.0^{a, b, d}	58.5^{a, b, c}
Dog-related activity	36.5^{b, d}	24.4^{a, c, d}	41.9^{b, d}	4.9^{a, b, c}
Jogging/running	2.4	4.3	4.0	2.9
Cycling	28.1^c	25.0^c	3.1^{a, b, d}	25.9^c
Playing	4.2^c	6.0^{c, d}	33.5^{a, b, c}	2.4^{b, c}
Observed for 2-minutes*	94.6^{b, d}	88.6^{a, c, d}	95.7^{b, d}	43.4^{a, b, c}

*Statistically significant differences for category among parks based on Pearson’s Chi-Square; ^aSignificantly different from Taradale (p < .05); ^bSignificantly different from Martindale (p < .05); ^cSignificantly different from West Hillhurst (p < .05); ^dSignificantly different from Meadowlark (p < .05)**Unknown due to unidentifiable sex of infant in stroller. Note for activity type, multiple activities could be reported for a single case.

ISSN: 1471-2458