Human Environments Analysis Laboratory, Department of Geography, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 3K7, Canada.
Department of Paediatrics, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 3K7, Canada.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2018 May 25;15(6):1072. doi: 10.3390/ijerph15061072.
A growing body of research suggests that increasing children's nature interactions can have positive benefits for their health-related quality of life (HRQOL); however, researchers have yet to examine how geographical context influences this relationship. The purpose of this study was to examine individual-level and environmental factors that are associated with HRQOL of children from different geographical contexts. Data were collected for 851 children from 34 elementary schools in Ontario, Canada. The natural environments around each child's home were computed using geospatial analyses in a geographic information system. Natural environment measures were combined with HRQOL and the demographics from child surveys to be used in a series of step-wise linear regression models. These models explored the relationship between children's HRQOL and the natural environment in urban/suburban and rural populations. In addition to important individual-level determinants, the findings revealed that characteristics of the natural environment, including the amount of greenness, park, and water, show significant relationships in the urban/suburban population. Interpersonal variables were the key predictors of HRQOL in the rural population. Where children live influences relationships between nature and HRQOL. These findings have implications for policymakers, health practitioners, educators, and parents in the design and the promotion of nature for children's HRQOL.
越来越多的研究表明，增加儿童与自然的互动可以对他们的健康相关生活质量（HRQOL）产生积极影响；然而，研究人员尚未研究地理环境如何影响这种关系。本研究的目的是检验与来自不同地理环境的儿童的 HRQOL 相关的个体和环境因素。数据来自加拿大安大略省 34 所小学的 851 名儿童。使用地理信息系统中的地理空间分析计算了每个儿童家庭周围的自然环境。将自然环境措施与 HRQOL 和儿童调查的人口统计数据相结合，用于一系列逐步线性回归模型。这些模型探讨了儿童 HRQOL 与城市/郊区和农村人口自然环境之间的关系。除了重要的个体水平决定因素外，研究结果还表明，自然环境的特征，包括绿化程度、公园和水，与城市/郊区人口有显著关系。人际变量是农村人口 HRQOL 的关键预测因素。儿童居住的地方会影响自然与 HRQOL 之间的关系。这些发现对政策制定者、卫生保健从业者、教育工作者和家长在设计和促进儿童 HRQOL 的自然环境方面具有启示意义。
