Stairs Flashcards
6 barriers to why people don’t take stairs
- Perception that it takes too long
- Too much effort
- Perception that it is dangerous
- Accessibility
- Aesthetics
- Not wide enough for group of people to ascend together or ascend and descend simultaneously
3 Intervention strategies to promote stairuse
- Decrease barriers to stairs
- Increase barriers to elevators
- Incentives
How to dec barriers to stairs
- Make stairwell more:
1. Accessible
2. Visible
3. Well lit
4. Wider
5. Attractive (plants, clean, pleasant aroma, interesting)
Disadvantages of increasing barriers to elevators (2)
- Disadvantages people who need to take stairs cause of mobility issues/transporting materials w/cart
- Considered better to use pos incentives than neg incentives to attempt to modify people’s behaviour
Why is using a reward like a chocolate bar for taking the stair controversial
- The reward they chose undermined the larger intent of promoting stair walking for weight control
- The inc in stair-walking the (extrinsic) reward produced was prob temp. & following week w/out candy reward many people may revert to elevator use
Possible ways to measure outcome use for stairs
- Measure stair n elevator use both b4 n after intervention
- Measure @ same time (of yr, of week, of day)
- Also measure in weeks n months following intervention to see how persistent is any change in stair or elevator use
- Indirect measures (e.g. surveys asking q’s like “Do u take the stairs or elevators”) are less desirable than direct measures such as:
- Having observers discreetly positioned to view and record stair and elevator use
- Film the stairwell and elevator. A motion-activated recorder will save the researcher from scanning minutes of film w/no people. Covert filming may present privacy issues in some contexts
- Use pressure-activated mat or infra-red light beam to record how many people pass a given point. Don’t use a turnstile w/a counter, as the turnstile imposes a barrier to use
- If you just count people moving past one point (e.g. at the bottom of the stairs) u will not account for the fact that some people traverse a single flight of stairs while others take multiple flights
- Are u only interested in stairs ascent, or also in descents
What were the 5 criteria accessed during the study on downtown buildings stairs
- Was the entrance to the stairwell visible from the entrance to building or from the elevators
- Was there a door or no door to the stairwell
- If there was a door, was it solid, glass, or locked? Was there a sign indicating that stairs were behind the door?
- Was the stairwell considered brightly lit
- Was the stairwell spacious enough for 2 people
Of the buildings that had stairwells how many met all of their accessibility criteria
11%
What is the Stairway to Health program
- Program encourages people to take stairs at work
- Partnership between Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canadian Council for Health and Active Living at Work
Bicycling is an effective form of what exercise
aerobic
Advantage of bicycling over running for people w/orthopedic limitations like arthritis
No impact w/ground on each step that accompanies runnning
Advantage of bicycling over running for people w/heavy peopl
Bicycle supports the rider’s body weight, so on relatively flat terrain heavy people are less handicapped when cycling rather than running
Why do people cycle
- For sport, fitness, transportation, and recreation
One of the most effective ways to promote community PA?
- create environment that allow people to walk or cycle as they go about their daily activities: shopping, going to work or school, visiting friends, even going out socially
Who is the most persuadable group, the ones most likely to adopt cycle transport?
- people who would cycle to school, work, gym, store etc. if conditions were favourable
Why are lack of bike lanes not a barier
- real barrier is ‘fear of riding w/motor vehicle traffic’
- bike lanes more like solution to this barrier
8 barriers to bicycle use
- Fear of ‘sharing the road’ w/motor vehicles (aggressive drivers compound this)
- Perception that it takes longer to bike than drive/take the bus
- Perception that it takes a lot of effort to cycle (hilly terrain n long distances compound this)
- Don’t want to arrive at destination sweaty, smelly, or tired
- Limited carrying capacity e.g. passengers, books, groceries
- Concern that bike will be stolen
- Don’t want to get wet and cold riding in the rain
- Perception that its not safe to ride after dark
6 intervention strategies to dec barriers to cycling
- Physical interventions
- Policy changes
- Bike share programs
- Urban redesign
- New L.A. law bans harassing bicyclists
- Changing societal norms
5 examples to slns to 1. Physical interventions
- Build bike lanes that separate cyclists from motorists
- Provide more n better change rooms n showers at schools n workplaces
- Provide secure bike storage
- Design racks that carry more than 2 bikes on public transit buses
- Build covered bike lanes to shelter riders from rain
4 examples to Policy changes
- Allows bus riders to bring their bikes into bus
- Schedule the 1st classes of the day to start later (allow peeps more time to cycle to school)
- Provide valet service at SFU for cyclists
- Organize a meal delivery and/or baggage transport service that would offset the limited capacity of bikes.
What was purpose of Mexico’s Eco-Bici program
- inc bicycle mode share (% of commuting) from 1% to 5%
- price for bikes structure for short-term use like cycling for work
Cons of proposed Vancouver Bici bike share program
- hurt business of bike rental shops
- Van’s helmet laws means rider need to bring own helmets or use shared ones (unhygienic)
- requires lots of funding
Examples of Urban redesign, and how does it inc bike useage
- refigure communities so that home, work, school, shopping, n recreation are closer together
- changes in zoning n land use can foster high-density urban clusters rather than sprawling metropolises where people live in residential suburbs n commute large distances by car or bus
- more compact communities facilitate transport by foot or bike
Explain the new L.A law for cyclists
- makes it a crime for motorists to harass bicyclists, verbally or physically
- allows victims of harassment to file civil lawsuits w/out waiting for city to press charges
Why is it important to change societal norms
- adds human level to our transport
- currently cycle transport is relatively uncommon in Van n other NA cities. If cycle transport more common n more accepted as ‘normal’ behaviour, more of those that we referred to in the intro to this unit as the “middle group” will feel comfortable cycling
Why is it less controversial to motivate behavioural change by removing barriers to the desired behaviour rather than raising barriers to the undesired behaviour
- human behaviour is complex n hard to predict e.g. raise tobacco taxes reduces tobacco consumption but creates black market in cigarettes
- inc barriers to motor vehicle use doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll get u to cycle more but just drive less (may take bus or carpool etc.)
Economic incentives must be ___ to work
substantial
Why did B.C. Tel suspend the offer of rewards for participation in PA?
- they were ‘rewarding the converted’ (people who participate regularly would participate regularly anyways even w/out financial reward)
What did B.C. Tel found to drive participation
- having fitness facilities at the workplace n allowing employees longer lunches to exercise at noon drove participation, not financial incentives
Why is the tax deduction not a good incentive to inc PA at the individual lvl
- Not a refund, but a deduction against income (person in 25% income tax bracket, tax savings only amount to $125 per child)
Why has Europe faced inc popularity of cycling
- ‘more fashionable’ to cycle
- response to economic trouble Europe experienced in recent years
Promotional events that Vancouver has done to promote biking
- Bike to Work Week (incentives like free coffee)
- Critical Mass
Do promotional events work? If so, why not on Van
- Can b effective if environment supports behaviour in question
- Van has many environmental barriers like wet weather, hills etc. and until barriers addressed promotional events will not produce lasting inc in cycling for transportation
What does build it and they will come refer to
The concept here is recognition of an unmet demand
Only 2% of commuters to downtown Van arrive by bike. Why wasted $$ building facilities like bike lanes for a small minority
Yes building lanes will not gurantee people will use them but if bike lanes are NOT there, we can b sure they won’t be used
Reason for inc in bike usage in Europe
- social trend (more fashionable to bike)
- economic crisis (bikes cheaper to buy n operate)
Argument against “it will be too expensive to build infrastructure”
- If a society values inc cycle transport highly enough e.g. to inc PA of citizens, reduce fossil fuel use, road congestion, air pollution — then it may decide that the costs of bike infrastructure are worthwhile
The point is to be creative in proposing slns, and to weigh _____
the various values — economic, environmental, social, health— when doing a cost/benefit analysis of proposals
Reasons why walking is a good form of exercise
- simple
- req no special skill or equipment
- done anywhere on land
Where have humans historically walked for? How was it changed in the 21st century
- obtain resources
- exchange artifacts
- adapt to seasonal variations in weather
- Walking has been largely supplanted by motorized transportation (cars, bus etc.) n by sedentary work n recreation
Which age group spend most time walking
Retired people
What did Erica Moore study examine
How easy it was to use stairs in Vancouver buildings
If u want people to use stairs a 1st step is to
make stairs accessible n pleasant. This won’t guarantee that people will use stairs, but if stairs are not accessible u can be pretty sure people won’t use them
Historically interventions have targeted ___
individuals
More recent approach uses ___ interventions
environmental interventions
Examples of environmental interventions
- Physical environment (playgrounds, sidewalks) n social, psychological, political, regulatory, and financial envrionment
Saelens reported higher lvls of PA and lower rates of obesity in a neighbourhood that was more ____ than the other neighbourhood studied
walkable
Sallis study found vigorous PA was related to ___
the # of convient activity facilities outside the homes
Larry Frank is an academic whose speciality is ____
linking community design to inc PA
Atlanta residents who live in the most ‘walkable’ neighbourhoods were ____ than those who live in the least walkable areas
250% more likely to be PA
A signle-lvl inc in an area’s walkability index equated to
30% inc in people classified as ‘active’
Walkability was calculated based on ___
land-use mix (residential, commercial, industiral, parks), residential density, intersection density, presence of sidewalks, and sidewalk connectivity
How is being ‘physically active’ defined as
at least 30 mins of daily moderate PA
How does Frank compare PA promotion programs and walkable neighbourhoods
- PA promotion programs for individuals typically have short-term effects while building walkable neighborhoods could b expected to have relatively permeant effects
What did Coronor argue made the Atlanta study important
It measured actual activity of adults rather than relying on self-reported methods of past research
The Atlanta study how were participants tracked by their activity
Wore accelerometers that monitored a lvl of physical intensity min by min
What did the Atlanta survey affirm
The fact that all activity adds up, every additional min can add to ur daily total
Frank says he hopes to convince people when looking for a home to factor in ___
Walkability (what the purchase means for their health)
Heart and Stroke Foundation reported studies show that those who live in less walkable neighbourhoods are more likely to ___
- be overweight n generate more auto-related air pollution
5% inc in the “walkability” of a neighbourhood was associated with ___
a quarter point drop in BMI, a 32% inc in reported walking, n 4.7% inc in total moderate n vigorous activity measured thru hip-worn activity monitors, 6.5% less driving n 5.5% reduction in air pollution
How did proponents countered that inc density would bring inc noise, traffic congestion, pollution etc.
Inc density would attract more retail n commercial business, thus allowing people to walk rather than drive to work n shop.
- Larry Beasly (promoted higher density of Van) envisioned downtown Van was for neighbourhoods that each had a “commercial high street, open space, green linkages, a social mix by income and household type (esp providing for fams with children), and an infrastructure of public facilities n services
What is Walk21
- nonprodit organization that advocates for political, social, n envrionmental change to promote walking
- linked to International Charter for Walking
What is the goal of International Charter for Walking
Creating healthy, efficient n sustainable communities where people choose to walk
- reducing the physical, social, n institutional barriers that limit walking activity
- help create a culture where people choose to walk thru our commitment to this charter n its strategic principles
What are the strategic principles in the International Charter for Walking
- Inc inclusive mobility
- Well designed n managed spaces n places for peeps
- Improved integration of networks
- Supportive land-use and spatial planning
- Reduced road danger
- Less crime and fear of crime
- More supportive authorities
- A culture of walking
