Active urbanism: How going places can get you places!
The continuing development of high-quality urban spaces is a vital area of study for those concerned with addressing the global pandemic of physical inactivity. According to the most recent UN estimate, in 2018 there were approximately 4.2 billion people living in urban areas (i.e., 55% of the global population), a number that is projected to rise to 5 billion by 2028.
As such, the growing literature on urban landscape design presents governments, health agencies & organisations with a helpful resource for making incidental physical activity, if not necessary, then at least more spontaneously desirable. It does this by increasing the expectation amongst the general population that such activity might just be enjoyable and fun. But, first, some more context…
In previous posts, I’ve written about the paradox of exercise. This is the observation that, despite knowing that exercise & physical activity is good for us, most people don’t move in sufficient quantities to maintain good health. I’ve also argued that this paradox exists as a result of the way exercise is prescribed, & the way it is perceived. But there is another factor that contributes to the problem: human evolution.
How evolution has worked against us
Human beings are excellent endurance athletes. We outperform other primates in this regard because of some unique physical attributes (e.g., long limbs) & physiological characteristics (e.g. thermoregulation via sweating). Whilst this has given humans advantages over other species for millennia, the maintenance of a hunting & gathering lifestyle meant that energy reserves had to be managed within tight limits.
From a survival perspective, the success of our species has relied on adaptations that made us good at running and walking (i.e., physical activity) and equally good at sitting & resting (i.e., physical inactivity) lest we become too fatigued to continue gathering food. These evolved tendencies remain fundamental to our makeup despite dramatic modern environmental changes.
Simply stated, whilst we are well adapted for moving our bodies, modern societies do little to encourage it. Food is usually in plentiful supply & the other necessities of life can be met with little physical effort. As such, there should be less need for rest and recovery.
Counteracting our physical laziness
The problem is that biological adaption occurs more slowly than environmental changes. This is why evolutionary biologists refer to many modern lifestyle diseases (e.g., diabetes, obesity) as being caused by a ‘mismatch’ between our evolved biology & our modern environments.
It seems that, for all too many of us, we eat well without having to work very hard for it & then rest as though we did.
It logically follows that unless we have compelling reasons to be physically active (as finding & growing food once were), we’re unlikely to do very much. Related back to the paradox of exercise, it seems the principal tools of PA health promotion – awareness raising & education – are insufficient for generating compelling reasons. So, new ways of encouraging PA seem needed, ways that can (i) counteract our evolved tendency towards laziness, (ii) generate positive perceptions regarding energetic physical activity, & (iii) cultivate autonomous motivation for health behaviour change.
As Daniel Lieberman has argued, “the vast majority of people today behave just as their ancestors by exercising only when it is fun (as a form of play) or when necessary”. This suggests there are two ways to help people to get moving: impel them or excite them.
Urban landscapes & their potential
Whilst modern urban environments are replete with conveniences that reduce the need to be physically active (e.g., lifts, escalators, light rail), those same environments offer many engaging & simple ways of encouraging such activity.
For example, in a study reflective of Volkswagon’s Fun Theory piano staircase ‘experiment’ (search it up on YouTube), UK researchers recently surveyed how people felt about using a series of urban landscape-designed walking routes. More specifically, they offered people the choice of walking along a conventional pavement, or a more challenging route that included steppingstones, balance beams or high steps.
Of the 595 survey respondents, 78% indicated they would pick a more challenging route, depending on the perceived level of difficulty & its design characteristics. They also found that 76% of people were positive about the idea of active landscape once the concept had been explained to them.
But how surprising is this really? Not very.
Oriented towards interest & fun
It has been repeatedly shown in laboratory studies that - given the opportunity - people will generally try to turn dull & mundane activities into something more interesting. Depending on the person & their motivations, they may do that by (i) thinking about the activity in a way that makes it more interesting, or (ii) changing the activity to make it so. According to Flow theorist Mihalyi Csikzsentmihalyi, people who think & act in these ways reflect an important aspect of the autotelic personality: the tendency to “improve the quality of life by making sure the conditions of flow are a constant part of everyday life”.
From a PA standpoint, it’s clear there are many things that people can do to make their health & fitness activities more interesting. Plenty of people walk whilst listening to podcasts, run whilst listening to music, & dismount bicycles to drink lattes with other helmeted, lycra-clad ‘weekend warriors’.
But what about the people who aren’t quite there yet? How can our immediate environment impel or excite more active living?
Active urbanism
Not only does the promotion of PA via the use of communal urban areas make plenty of sense, it can leverage three things that are engaging for human beings:
The Orienting (or ‘Huh?’) Reflex - we naturally pay attention to environmental changes we don’t expect, so will likely notice changes to urban pedestrian landscapes & be curious about them
Choice architecture - having opportunities to choose how we move within our environment can make our action more autonomous, plus the architecture can serve as a ‘nudge’ about long-term goals & values (i.e., active living)
Natural movers - we are active creatures & enjoy moving our bodies in space. Whilst age does diminish physical capacities & confidence, landscape redesign can include features that enhance the safety of active urbanism (e.g., handrails alongside stepping stones).
At present, active urbanism is a fledgling idea but part of a broader effort to enhance the quality & potential of built environments. As such, it will need to capture the attention of all branches of government, such that supportive policy can be written to create diverse, interesting communal spaces that can leverage incidental activity in ways that support the balance, coordination & strength of people (of all ages).
Spaces that can impel AND excite more active living…should people wish to do so!
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Interested to read more on this topic?
Boldina, A., Gomes, B., & Steemers, K. (2022). Active urbanism: The potential effect of urban design on bone health. Cities & health, 6 (2), 389-403.
Smith, J. L., Wagaman, J., & Handley, I. M. (2009). Keeping it dull or making it fun: Task variation as a function of promotion versus prevention focus. Motivation and Emotion, 33, 150-160.
