Sense of Community and Its Association With the Neighborhood Built Environment

• Published in: Environment and behavior Vol. 46; no. 6; pp. 677 - 697
• Main Authors: French, Sarah, Wood, Lisa, Foster, Sarah Alexandra, Giles-Corti, Billie, Frank, Lawrence, Learnihan, Vincent
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.08.2014; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Adjustment; Australia; Built Environment; Communities; Community; Multivariate analysis; Neighborhoods; Neighbourhoods; Objectivity; Perception; Perceptions; Regression; Regression analysis; Residential areas; Residential density; Transport; Urban environments; Walking; Western Australia; Australia; Western Australia Australia; Australia, Western Australia, Perth; ISW, Australia, Western Australia; walkability; neighborhood design; sense of community
• ISSN: 0013-9165; 1552-390X
• DOI: 10.1177/0013916512469098

We investigated the influence of neighborhood built form on sense of community in Perth, Western Australia. It was hypothesized that sense of community would be stronger in individuals living in pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods. Multivariate linear regression models explored associations between walking and sense of community, with progressive adjustment for objective and perceived neighborhood characteristics. Sense of community was positively associated with walking for transport and positive perceptions of neighborhood quality, and negatively associated with residential density. The findings highlight the influence of local area perceptions on sense of community that appeared to be more important than objective environment characteristics. However, the latter may influence perceptions, and this requires investigation.