Wellbeing: A Complete Reference Guide, Volume II, Wellbeing and the Environment

7

“We Live Here Too”… What Makes a Child-Friendly Neighborhood?

Karen E. Martin and Lisa J. Wood

The University of Western Australia, Australia

Introduction

Gone are the days when most children roam freely in the suburbs, play ball on the street, and populate parks after school; deserted neighborhoods are more the norm in many of today's modern westernized cities. Indeed research indicates that children are spending less time outside (Gill, 2008; Hofferth, 2009), have less independent mobility in their neighborhood (Pooley, Turnbull, & Adams, 2005), and spend more time sedentary using screens than previous generations (Rideout, Foehr, & Roberts, 2010). Changes to neighborhoods and Western culture have clearly led to some of these observed changes in children's behavior. Development of bush and other vacant land, higher-density living, and more manicured and smaller parks and gardens have led to diminishing nature contact for children (Pyle, 2007). Trends towards larger houses on smaller blocks have precipitated the demise of the once iconic suburban backyard, with dramatic repercussions for where and how children can play (Hall, 2010). Stranger-danger fears (Timperio, Crawford, Telford, & Salmon, 2004) and liability aversion (Tierney, 2011) further restrict opportunities for children to play and to be independently mobile in their neighborhood. Added to this is the spiralling ‘busyness’ of families; children are now timetabled into sports, homework, and structured activities which ...