I Gusti Ngurah Edi Putra1, Thomas Astell-Burt2,3,4,5, Dylan P Cliff6,7, Stewart A Vella7,8, Xiaoqi Feng1,9,10,11. 1. Population Wellbeing and Environment Research Lab (PowerLab), School of Health and Society, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Building 29, Wollongong, NSW, 2522, Australia. 2. Population Wellbeing and Environment Research Lab (PowerLab), School of Health and Society, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Building 29, Wollongong, NSW, 2522, Australia. thomasab@uow.edu.au. 3. Menzies Centre for Health Policy, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia. thomasab@uow.edu.au. 4. Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Environmental Health, Beijing, China. thomasab@uow.edu.au. 5. School of Population Medicine and Public Health, Peking Union Medical College, The Chinese Academy for Medical Sciences and Tsinghua University, Beijing, China. thomasab@uow.edu.au. 6. School of Education, Early Start, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia. 7. Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia. 8. School of Psychology, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia. 9. Menzies Centre for Health Policy, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia. 10. Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Environmental Health, Beijing, China. 11. School of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: This study aimed to investigate prosocial behaviour-those behaviours that benefit others or enhance relationships with others-as a mediator of the associations between green space quality and child health-related outcomes (physical activity, mental health, and health-related quality of life (HRQOL)). METHODS: This study involved data from 4983 children with 10-year follow-up (2004-2014) retrieved from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children. Green space quality (the exposure), prosocial behaviour (the candidate mediator), and child health-related outcomes were assessed biennially based on caregiver reports. Causal mediation analysis was used, with four mediation models developed for each outcome. RESULTS: Mediation by prosocial behaviour appeared in the late childhood mediation model with higher mediation proportions reported compared to models of earlier and middle childhood. Prosocial behaviour had moderate mediation consistency for the association between green space quality and physical activity enjoyment, but no mediation was evident for other physical activity variables. Prosocial behaviour had low mediation consistency for child mental health (internalising and externalising subscales). Similarly, low mediation consistency of prosocial behaviour was also evident for all HRQOL variables, such as physical, emotional, social, school functioning, psychosocial health, and total quality of life (QOL). CONCLUSION: Prosocial behaviour partially mediated the association between green space quality and child health-related outcomes (physical activity enjoyment, mental health, and HRQOL). Improving the quality of neighbourhood green space that supports the development of prosocial behaviour may result in better child health-related outcomes. Other physical activity variables might not specifically relate to social interactions, and therefore, no mediation by prosocial behaviour was apparent.
BACKGROUND: This study aimed to investigate prosocial behaviour-those behaviours that benefit others or enhance relationships with others-as a mediator of the associations between green space quality and child health-related outcomes (physical activity, mental health, and health-related quality of life (HRQOL)). METHODS: This study involved data from 4983 children with 10-year follow-up (2004-2014) retrieved from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children. Green space quality (the exposure), prosocial behaviour (the candidate mediator), and child health-related outcomes were assessed biennially based on caregiver reports. Causal mediation analysis was used, with four mediation models developed for each outcome. RESULTS: Mediation by prosocial behaviour appeared in the late childhood mediation model with higher mediation proportions reported compared to models of earlier and middle childhood. Prosocial behaviour had moderate mediation consistency for the association between green space quality and physical activity enjoyment, but no mediation was evident for other physical activity variables. Prosocial behaviour had low mediation consistency for child mental health (internalising and externalising subscales). Similarly, low mediation consistency of prosocial behaviour was also evident for all HRQOL variables, such as physical, emotional, social, school functioning, psychosocial health, and total quality of life (QOL). CONCLUSION: Prosocial behaviour partially mediated the association between green space quality and child health-related outcomes (physical activity enjoyment, mental health, and HRQOL). Improving the quality of neighbourhood green space that supports the development of prosocial behaviour may result in better child health-related outcomes. Other physical activity variables might not specifically relate to social interactions, and therefore, no mediation by prosocial behaviour was apparent.
Authors: K A Lambert; G Bowatte; R Tham; C Lodge; L Prendergast; J Heinrich; M J Abramson; S C Dharmage; B Erbas Journal: Environ Res Date: 2017-08-10 Impact factor: 6.498
Authors: Taren Sanders; Xiaoqi Feng; Paul P Fahey; Chris Lonsdale; Thomas Astell-Burt Journal: Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act Date: 2015-09-30 Impact factor: 6.457