Citation

Fathi S, Sajadzadeh H, Mohammadi Sheshkal F, Aram F, Pinter G, Felde I, Mosavi A. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020; 17(7): e2359.

Affiliation

Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology, QLD4059 Brisbane, Australia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, MDPI: Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute)

DOI

10.3390/ijerph17072359

PMID

32244358

Abstract

Along with environmental pollution, urban planning has been connected to public health. The research indicates that the quality of built environments plays an important role in reducing mental disorders and overall health. The structure and shape of the city are considered as one of the factors influencing happiness and health in urban communities and the type of the daily activities of citizens. The aim of this study was to promote physical activity in the main structure of the city via urban design in a way that the main form and morphology of the city can encourage citizens to move around and have physical activity within the city. Functional, physical, cultural-social, and perceptual-visual features are regarded as the most important and effective criteria in increasing physical activities in urban spaces, based on literature review. The environmental quality of urban spaces and their role in the physical activities of citizens in urban spaces were assessed by using the questionnaire tool and analytical network process (ANP) of structural equation modeling. Further, the space syntax method was utilized to evaluate the role of the spatial integration of urban spaces on improving physical activities. Based on the results, consideration of functional diversity, spatial flexibility and integration, security, and the aesthetic and visual quality of urban spaces plays an important role in improving the physical health of citizens in urban spaces. Further, more physical activities, including motivation for walking and the sense of public health and happiness, were observed in the streets having higher linkage and space syntax indexes with their surrounding texture.

Language: en

Keywords

Society 5.0; analytical network process; health; health economics; health informatics; health information systems; physical activities; public health; public space; smart cities; sustainability; urban health; urban morphology; urban planning; urbanization