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Socioeconomic Differences in Walking Time of Children and Adolescents to Public Green Spaces in Urban Areas—Results of the German Environmental Survey (2014–2017)

Author

Listed:
  • Julia Rehling

    (Department Environmental Hygiene, German Environment Agency, 14195 Berlin, Germany)

  • Christiane Bunge

    (Department Environmental Hygiene, German Environment Agency, 14195 Berlin, Germany)

  • Julia Waldhauer

    (Department of Epidemiology and Health Monitoring, Robert Koch Institute, 12101 Berlin, Germany)

  • André Conrad

    (Department Environmental Hygiene, German Environment Agency, 14195 Berlin, Germany)

Abstract

Public green spaces have a high potential for a positive impact on people’s health and wellbeing, especially in urban areas. Studies on environmental justice indicate socially unequal access possibilities to urban green spaces. This article presents results on associations between individual socioeconomic position (SEP) and walking time from home to public green spaces in young people living in urban areas with more than 20,000 inhabitants in Germany. Data were derived from the German Environmental Survey for Children and Adolescents 2014–2017 (GerES V), the environmental module of the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS Wave 2). The sample comprises 1149 participants aged 3 to 17 years. A total of 51.5% of the participants reach a public green space on foot within five and 72.8% within ten minutes from home. The lower the participant’s SEP, the longer the walking time. Logistic regression models controlling for age group, sex, migration background, and region of residence show that participants with a low SEP have a significantly higher risk (odds ratio = 1.98; 95% confidence interval: 1.31–2.99) of needing more than ten minutes to walk from home to a public green space than participants with a high SEP. GerES V data indicate that young people living in urban areas in Germany do not equally benefit from the health-promoting potential of green spaces, which is an important aspect of environmental health inequalities.

Suggested Citation

  • Julia Rehling & Christiane Bunge & Julia Waldhauer & André Conrad, 2021. "Socioeconomic Differences in Walking Time of Children and Adolescents to Public Green Spaces in Urban Areas—Results of the German Environmental Survey (2014–2017)," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(5), pages 1-12, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:5:p:2326-:d:506892
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Katharina Stahlmann & Emily Mena & Ronny Kuhnert & André Conrad & Gabriele Bolte, 2022. "Social Inequalities in the Association between Social Infrastructure and Mental Health: An Observational Cross-Sectional Analysis of Children and Adolescents in Germany," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(11), pages 1-18, June.
    3. Myung Ja Kim & C. Michael Hall, 2022. "Application of EMGB to Study Impacts of Public Green Space on Active Transport Behavior: Evidence from South Korea," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(12), pages 1-27, June.

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