Perceptions of neighborhood supports 

for walking 

GIS and the 2015 National Health Interview 

Survey

Calvin Tribby and David Berrigan

Health Behaviors Research Branch 

Behavioral Research Program

Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences

FCSM Geospatial Interest Group

October 26, 2018
2

Background

▪ GIS data and perceptions of the environment have 

independent and joint associations with health behaviors 

▪ The use of these two measures is inherently a geospatial 

research question:

▪ Data quality 

▪ Scale 

▪ Integration of data: survey responses and audits

GIS Data

Perceptions

Walking
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▪ Sponsor: National Center for Health Statistics (CDC)

▪ Population: Nationally representative of the US 

noninstitutionalized adults (≥18)

▪ Modules

▪ Core questions every year

▪ Cancer module asks about cancer screening, walking for leisure and 

transportation, perceptions of neighborhood environment
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NHIS Domains of Neighborhood Perceptions

▪ Weather influence on walking (n=1)

▪ Suitability of walking infrastructure (n=2)

▪ Availability of walking destinations (n=3)

▪ Walking and safety (n=3)

T4A.org
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Research on Perceptions and Neighborhoods

▪ Positive neighborhood perceptions correlate with higher

physical activity

▪ Match between perceptions and GIS data:

▪ Those whose perceptions matched their GIS measured highly 

walkable neighborhood had less decline in walking 

▪ Similar result for change in BMI

▪ Implication: One measure of the neighborhood is an 

incomplete picture for associations with health behaviors

(Troped, et al. 2011; Gebel, et al. 2011)
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Geospatial Concerns with Perceptions and Neighborhoods

▪ Spatial congruence: 

▪ Perceptions are better linked to self-defined 

neighborhoods

▪ Problematic to use arbitrary neighborhoods

▪ Arbitrary neighborhoods: 

▪ Self-defined are much smaller than Census tracts

▪ Vary with demographics and built environments

▪ Implication: Spatial mismatch between perceptions and 

measurements of neighborhood extent matters

(Tribby, et al. 2016; 2017; Coulton, et al. 2013)
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Protecting Privacy

▪ Neighborhood perception data are free and publicly 

available

▪ Linkage with location data requires an NCHS Research 

Data Center (RDC)

1. Application and approval of project

2. Onsite or remote analysis options

3. Aimed at protecting confidentiality of survey respondents

https://www.cdc.gov/rdc/
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2015 NHIS: Prevalence of any walking in past 7 days

From: Carlson, et al. In Press Am J Prev Med
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Linking 2015 NHIS to Walkability Index

▪ CDC – NCI collaboration on walking behavior, 

perceptions, and GIS data of neighborhoods

▪ NHIS walking trips

▪ EPA’s walkability index

▪ Census block group level

HHS, 2015

Watson, et al. abstract submitted to 2019 ACSM
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Discussion

▪ 2015 NHIS is a rare federal resource that allows linkage of 

neighborhood perceptions and GIS data for associations 

with health behaviors

▪ Trade off between national scale surveillance of health 

behaviors versus specificity of measures

▪ Data: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhis
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Thanks!

calvin.tribby@nih.gov

berrigad@nih.gov

Health Behaviors Research Branch 

Behavioral Research Program

Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences

National Cancer Institute
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References

Carlson, S. A., G. P. Whitfield, E. L. Peterson, E. N. Ussery, K. B. Watson, D. Berrigan, and J. E. Fulton. 2018. 

Geographic and Urban–Rural Differences in Walking for Leisure and Transportation. American Journal of Preventive 

Medicine. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S074937971832110X (last accessed 25 October 2018).

Coulton, C. J., M. Z. Jennings, and T. Chan. 2013. How Big is My Neighborhood? Individual and Contextual Effects on 

Perceptions of Neighborhood Scale. American Journal of Community Psychology 51 (1–2):140–150.

Gebel, K., A. E. Bauman, T. Sugiyama, and N. Owen. 2011. Mismatch between perceived and objectively assessed 

neighborhood walkability attributes: Prospective relationships with walking and weight gain. Health & Place 17 (2):519–

524.

Tribby, C. P., H. J. Miller, B. B. Brown, K. R. Smith, and C. M. Werner. 2017. Geographic regions for assessing built 

environmental correlates with walking trips: A comparison using different metrics and model designs. Health & Place

45:1–9.

Tribby, C. P., H. J. Miller, B. B. Brown, C. M. Werner, and K. R. Smith. 2016. Assessing built environment walkability using 

activity-space summary measures. Journal of Transport and Land Use 9 (1):187–207.

Troped, P. J., K. Tamura, H. A. Whitcomb, and F. Laden. 2011. Perceived Built Environment and Physical Activity in U.S. 

Women by Sprawl and Region. American Journal of Preventive Medicine 41 (5):473–479.