School of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom.
Departament de Ciències de l´Activitat Física, Universitat de Vic-Universitat Central de Catalunya, Spain.
PLoS One. 2019 Aug 1;14(8):e0220308. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0220308. eCollection 2019.
In Ecological models, physical environments can be important determinants of transport-related walking. With repeated exposure to the same environment, learning of a linkage between the cues in the environment and walking should occur. Subsequent encounters with the cues can prompt the behaviour relatively automatically. No studies have experimentally tested the potential learning of this linkage between cues and behaviour. Choices between stairs and escalators in public access settings were employed to test this premise for transport-related walking.
Three studies investigated the effects of visual cues on stair/escalator choices (combined n = 115,062). In quasi-experimental, interrupted time-series designs, observers audited choices in public access settings. Design alone phases with art or coloured backgrounds were compared with design plus message phases in which verbal health promotion messages were superimposed on the visual cues. Analyses used bootstrapped logistic regression.
In initial studies, the design alone phases had no effect whereas subsequent design plus message phases reduced escalator choice. In two further studies, a 5-6 week design plus message phase that reduced escalator choice preceded a design alone phase. The visual background behind the successful health promotion message was reintroduced four weeks after the intervention was removed. The visual cue of design alone reduced escalator choice after it had been paired with the verbal health promotion message. There were no differences between art and coloured backgrounds.
These studies demonstrate for the first time a learnt linkage between transport-related walking and environmental cues. Discussion focuses on the mechanisms that may underlie this learning and cues in the environment that are relevant to transport-related walking.
在生态模型中，物理环境可以成为影响与交通相关步行的重要决定因素。由于反复暴露于相同的环境中，人们应该会在环境线索和步行之间建立起联系，并进行学习。随后遇到这些线索时，行为就可以相对自动地发生。目前还没有研究通过实验来检验这种环境线索与行为之间联系的潜在学习能力。本研究采用公共环境中楼梯和自动扶梯的选择来检验这一与交通相关的步行的前提。
三项研究调查了视觉线索对楼梯/自动扶梯选择的影响（合并 n = 115,062）。在准实验、中断时间序列设计中，观察者在公共环境中对选择进行了审核。设计仅阶段（使用艺术或彩色背景）与设计加信息阶段（在视觉线索上叠加口头健康促进信息）进行了比较。分析使用了自举逻辑回归。
在最初的研究中，设计仅阶段没有效果，而随后的设计加信息阶段减少了自动扶梯的选择。在另外两项研究中，一个 5-6 周的设计加信息阶段减少了自动扶梯的选择，随后是一个设计仅阶段。在干预措施停止四周后，重新引入了成功的健康促进信息背后的视觉背景。在与口头健康促进信息配对后，仅设计的视觉线索减少了自动扶梯的选择。艺术和彩色背景之间没有差异。
这些研究首次证明了与交通相关的步行和环境线索之间存在习得的联系。讨论重点是这种学习背后的机制，以及与交通相关步行相关的环境线索。
