Dr. Bedimo-Rung is proposing a career development plan and research project to study the environmental influences of playgrounds on physical activity. This field, recently identified as social epidemiology, represents an expansion in her research focus from the individual determinants of disease to the social and environmental conditions that affect health. Her career goals are to: (1) Obtain formal training in social epidemiology, multilevel modeling, GIS, and physical activity research; (2) use her new skills to successfully compete for future grants in this area; (3) successfully achieve tenure in her current academic position while teaching and conducting research in the field of social epidemiology; (4) integrate her research findings into policy that successfully guides positive changes in health outcomes; and (5) further assist in the growth and development of the LSU School of Public Health. LSU has a strong commitment to Dr. Bedimo-Rung's research career and is able to provide release time, a research environment, and mentor resources to assist her. The proposed research project will assess physical activity before and after a planned renovation of city playgrounds. The first specific aim of the study is to evaluate, through the use of the System for Observing Play and Leisure Activity in Youth (SOPLAY) methodology, the impact of playground enhancement on: (1) The number of playground users, (2) the level of physical activity among users, and (3) the estimated energy expenditure rate within playgrounds. The second specific aim is to determine what specific features of playground environments are associated with increased physical activity among users, obtained through continued development and use of the Bedimo-Rung Assessment Tools (BRAT). The third specific aim is to: (1) Provide basic demographic data on users and (2) assess user reactions to the renovated playgrounds through the use of exit interviews. The final specific aim is to design a future study to measure physical activity among children in the neighborhood population and seek further funding. The proposed application provides Dr. Bedimo-Rung with an opportunity to acquire the necessary skills in health promotion research, to apply those skills in a natural experiment, and to test innovative techniques to measure physical activity and the environment.
| Broyles, Stephanie T; Mowen, Andrew J; Theall, Katherine P et al. (2011) Integrating social capital into a park-use and active-living framework. Am J Prev Med 40:522-9 |
| Rung, Ariane L; Broyles, Stephanie T; Mowen, Andrew J et al. (2011) Escaping to and being active in neighbourhood parks: park use in a post-disaster setting. Disasters 35:383-403 |
| Rung, Ariane L; Mowen, Andrew J; Broyles, Stephanie T et al. (2011) The role of park conditions and features on park visitation and physical activity. J Phys Act Health 8 Suppl 2:S178-87 |
| Bedimo-Rung, Ariane L; Thomson, Jessica L; Mowen, Andrew J et al. (2008) The condition of neighborhood parks following Hurricane Katrina: development of a Post-Hurricane Assessment instrument. J Phys Act Health 5:45-57 |
