Determinants and effects of perceived walkability: a literature review, conceptual model and research agenda

Figures & data

Table 1. Chronological overview of studies analysing perceived walkability.

Study	Used data	Perceived walkability measure	Main result(s)
Gebel et al. (2009)	2650 adults from Adelaide (Australia)	NEWS	Perceived and objective walkability are mostly aligned; perceived walkability has stronger effects on walking time than objective walkability
Bias et al. (2010)	1355 adults from West Virginia (U.S.)	LWI	The LWI is a reliable, concise and easy to use instrument to assess perceived walkability
Brown and Werner (2011)	51 residents of Salt Lake City (U.S.)	NEWS	A new rail stop and developments around the station increases perceived walkability
Perez et al. (2011)	401 adult women from Toronto (Canada)	NEWS-A	Perceived walkability has no significant effect on physical activity
Arvidsson et al. (2012)	1925 adults from Stockholm (Sweden)	NEWS	Perceived and objective walkability are mostly aligned; perceived walkability has stronger effects on recreational/ utilitarian walking than objective walkability
Stamps (2013)	112 adult U.S. citizens	Agreement rating on 1 statement	Pave and turf surfaces result in high – and rocks and water surfaces in low – perceived walkability
Van Dyck et al. (2013)	1166 adults from Ghent (Belgium)	NEWS	Perceived walkability has a positive effect on the frequency and duration of walking and cycling
Oreskovic et al. (2014)	45 young adults from Massachusetts (U.S.)	Evaluation of photographs	Perceived walkability is mainly affected by the presence of building windows, focal points, pedestrians and cars
Hanibuchi et al. (2015)	2395 Japanese adults	Agreement ratings on 6 statements	Perceived walkability positively affects leisure-time physical activity, while objective walkability does not
Hernandez et al. (2015)	570 older Latino adults from Los Angeles (U.S.)	15 items from NEWS	A greater neighbourhood walkability is associated with lower chances of symptoms of depression
Jun and Hur (2015)	837 homeowners from Ohio (U.S.)	Agreement ratings on 4 statements	Perceived walkability stimulates neighbourhood social environment while objective walkability does not
Chen et al. (2016)	400 older adults from Hong Kong (China)	LWI	Walkability negatively affects depression levels
Chor et al. (2016)	14,749 civil servants from six Brazilian states	Agreement ratings on 9 statements	Perceived walkability positively affects leisure time physical activity and transport-related physical activity
Sealy-Jefferson et al. (2016)	399 African American women from Detroit (U.S.)	Agreement ratings on 6 statements	Perceived walkability negatively affects depressive symptoms, which in turn influence preterm delivery
Berry et al. (2017)	2402 adults from South Australia	6 items from NEWS-A	Residential area has significant effect on walking frequency, perceived walkability only in urban areas
Hinckson et al. (2017)	524 adolescents from Auckland and Wellington (New Zealand)	NEWS-Y	Both perceived and objective walkability positively affect physical activity, but strongest effects of perceived walkability
Jensen et al. (2017)	536 adults from Salt Lake City (U.S.)	NEWS-A	Living closer to a complete street improves perceived walkability; both perceived and objective walkability influence active travel engagement
Notthoff and Carstensen (2017)	74 older adults from Oakland (U.S.)	NEWS-A	Messages promoting walking are more effective when perceived walkability is high.
Root et al. (2017)	469 residents of Denver (U.S.)	Agreement ratings on 4 statements	Perceived walkability is positively associated with neighbourhood aesthetic ratings
Alidoust et al. (2018)	54 older adults from Gold Coast (Australia)	Interview questions	Both perceived walkability and the residential neighbourhood impact recreational/utilitarian walking
Bartshe et al. (2018)	410 students of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (U.S.)	NEWS-A	Perceived walkability has no significant impact on meeting physical activity recommendations
Bödeker (2018)	97 older adults from Bielefeld (Germany)	Mental mapping interviews	Both objective and perceived walkability positively impact walking; partial spatial overlap between perceived neighbourhood and pedestrian network
Solbraa et al. (2018)	972 Norwegian adults	Walking time to 4 services/amenities	perceived walkability has a positive effect on physical activity
Adkins et al. (2019)	190 pedestrians from Tucson (U.S.)	Agreement ratings on 6 statements	Perceived walkability (especially perceived safety) varied according to environments with different ethnicity
Brown et al. (2019)	536 adults from Salt Lake City (U.S.)	Agreement ratings on 23 statements	Perceived walkability has a positive effect on the intention to use light rail
Calise et al. (2019)	1500 households from Missouri (U.S.)	PANES	High perceived walkability results in greater selection of – and greater access to – fresh fruit and vegetables
Kwon et al. (2019)	1392 residents of Ohio and Texas (U.S.)	Agreement ratings on 6 statements	Perceived walkability has positive effects on recreational well-being, happiness, and life satisfaction
Marquet and Hipp (2019)	119 workers from Missouri (U.S.)	PANES	Both perceived and objective walkability of the worksite environment positively affect physical activity at work.
Brown and Jensen (2020)	536 adults from Salt Lake City (U.S.)	NEWS-A	Objective walkability has stronger effects on walking (to activities and for leisure) than perceived walkability
Consoli et al. (2020)	573 inactive adults in Calgary (Canada)	NEWS-A	Perceived walkability positively impacts daily walking, objective walkability does not
Suarez-Balcazar et al. (2020)	96 pedestrians from Chicago (U.S.)	NEWS	Perceived walkability positively impacts walking to neighbourhood activities
Zeng and Shen (2020)	23 residents of Zhangzhou (China)	Agreement ratings on 7 statements	Urban regeneration positively affected perceived walkability, which in turn stimulates recreational walking
Gan et al. (2021)	748 residents of Nanjing (China)	Agreement ratings on 3 statements	Both perceived walkability and objective built environment characteristics impact walking to and from metro stations
Koohsari et al. (2021)	1010 adults from Nerima Ward and Kanuma City (Japan)	Agreement ratings on 3 statements	Perceived population density has a negative effect on contact with neighbours, overall perceived walkability has no effect
Lucchesi et al. (2021)	1884 adults from Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo (Brazil)	Agreement ratings on 7 statements	Perceived walkability has a positive effect on life satisfaction
Lui and Wong (2021)	70 older adults from Hong Kong (China)	NEWS-A	Perceived walkability is positively related with walking speed, balance and gait performance, but not with walking time
Mitra and Hess (2021)	1640 adults from Toronto (Canada)	Agreement ratings on 8 statements	Perceived walkability/bikability has a positive effect on the intention to use e-scooters
Syafriharti et al. (2021)	1349 motorcyclists from Bandung City (Indonesia)	Agreement ratings on 3 statements	Perceived walkability has a positive effect on the preference for walking (rather than riding a motorcycle)
Yin et al. (2021)	782 residents of Xi’an (China)	Agreement ratings on 3 statements	Perceived walkability positively affects life satisfaction, both directly and indirectly through travel satisfaction
Zhang et al. (2021)	302 older adults from Hong Kong (China)	Agreement ratings on 3 statements	Perceived walkability has a positive impact on the sense of community (especially place attachment and neighbourhood satisfaction) and life satisfaction
Blackwood et al. (2022)	132 older adults from Flint (U.S.)	NEWS-A	Perceived walkability (especially perceived land use mix) is negatively associated with recent falls
van der Vlugt et al. (2022)	217 residents of Hamburg (Germany)	Agreement ratings on 3 statements	Perceived walkability (which is affected by travel attitudes) has a positive effect on walking

Figure 1. Conceptual model of the determinants and outcomes of perceived walkability.

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Perez, D. F., Ritvo, P. G., Brown, P. E., Holowaty, E., & Ardern, C. (2011). Perceived walkability, social support, age, native language, and vehicle access as correlates of physical activity: A cross-sectional study of low-socioeconomic status, ethnic, minority women. Journal of Physical Activity & Health, 8(8), 1098–1107.

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Stamps, A. E. (2013). Surf & turf: Effects of ground substrate on perceived threat, enclosure, and perceived walkability. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 117(2), 511–527.

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Van Dyck, D., De Meester, F., Cardon, G., Deforche, B., & De Bourdeaudhuij, I. (2013). Physical environmental attributes and active transportation in Belgium: What about adults and adolescents living in the same neighborhoods? American Journal of Health Promotion, 27(5), 330–338.

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Oreskovic, N. M., Roth, P., Charles, S. L., Tsigaridi, D., Shepherd, K., Nelson, K. P., & Bar, M. (2014). Attributes of form in the built environment that influence perceived walkability. Journal of Architectural and Planning Research, 31(3), 218–232.

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Hanibuchi, T., Nakaya, T., Yonejima, M., & Honjo, K. (2015). Perceived and objective measures of neighborhood walkability and physical activity among adults in Japan: A multilevel analysis of a nationally representative sample. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 12(10), 13350–13364.

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Chen, Y. Y., Wong, G. H. Y., Lum, T. Y., Lou, V. W. Q., Ho, A. H. Y., Luo, H., & Tong, T. L. W. (2016). Neighborhood support network, perceived proximity to community facilities and depressive symptoms among low socioeconomic status Chinese elders. Aging & Mental Health, 20(4), 423–431.

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Adkins, A., Barillas-Longoria, G., Martinez, D. N., & Ingram, M. (2019). Differences in social and physical dimensions of perceived walkability in Mexican American and non-Hispanic white walking environments in Tucson, Arizona. Journal of Transport & Health, 14, 100585.

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Brown, B. B., & Jensen, W. A. (2020). Dog ownership and walking: Perceived and audited walkability and activity correlates. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(4), 1385.

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