Gavin R Mccormack

Gavin R Mccormack
University of Calgary · Department of Community Health Sciences

PhD, MSc

About

248
Publications
55,162
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8,221
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Introduction
Professor in Community Health Sciences (University of Calgary). Postdoctoral training in Population/Public Health in the Department of Community Health Sciences (University of Calgary), PhD in Public Health (University of Western Australia), and MSc in Sports Science (Edith Cowan University). Leads the Built Environment and Healthy Living Lab, investigating links between urban design and health (e.g., physical activity and fitness) in adults and children and equity-seeking populations.

Publications

Publications (248)
Article
Full-text available
During the COVID-19 pandemic, a Canadian recreation centre launched a community-based intervention to increase physical activity (PA) and reduce sedentary behaviour (SB). The Vivo Play Scientist (VPS) program provided a free wearable device (Garmin Vivofit4) that synchronized with a customized eHealth dashboard. Aim: The study investigated the feas...
Article
Full-text available
Parks are important urban design settings to promote physical activity within urban areas. However, existing park audit tools often do not address the unique challenges of high-density areas, especially in Asian contexts. This study presents the development and testing of the audiT tool for Activity-friendly Parks in denSe urban areas (TAPS) that s...
Article
Full-text available
Objective We aimed to 1) estimate the differences in transportation (TPA) and leisure physical activity (LPA) participation and duration between Canadian-born and immigrant adults, and 2) examine whether associations between neighbourhood walkability and physical activity differ by residency status. Methods We linked Canadian Community Health Surve...
Article
Full-text available
Unstructured play is characterized as play that is child initiated and determined, allowing children the freedom and flexibility to engage in activities, including taking risks, without adult intervention. However, playworkers and caregivers are important mediators of children’s unstructured play. Studies have investigated playworker and caregiver...
Presentation
Full-text available
工作场所是人们花费大量时间的地方,因此在我们的生活中具有重要意义:工作场所可以影响我们的健康和工作效率。但,究竟工作场所如何影响我们的健康呢?本次将就该话题展开讨论。 https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/Z1D5M7fCpf3p_D4_lBZb-g
Article
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Insufficient physical activity and excessive sitting time among office-based workers have been linked to various health risks and economic consequences. While health promotion interventions are essential, the role of workplace design in encouraging active behaviours is increasingly recognised. However, significant gaps exist in knowledge about how...
Data
图表简讯:建成环境设计对抑郁症的作用 https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/B9ENl60r99mEDTGk557xcA An inforgraphic of this paper: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/365687179_Depression_among_middle-aged_adults_in_Japan_The_role_of_the_built_environment_design
Data
图表简讯:建成环境与久坐行为的关系 https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/UbPY02_bjT1N9O8-b_oVJA An inforgraphic of this paper: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/340686244_Environmental_attributes_and_sedentary_behaviours_among_Canadian_adults
Data
图表简讯:养狗、遛狗与社会资本 https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/a--g-V7Sljpvsy4YUPPTeA An infographic of the paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-021-00804-y
Data
An infographic of the paper below: Koohsari, M. J., McCormack, G. R., Nakaya, T., & Oka, K. (2020). Neighbourhood built environment and cardiovascular disease: knowledge and future directions. Nature Reviews Cardiology, 17(5), 261-263.
Article
Full-text available
Background The growth of urban dwelling populations globally has led to rapid increases of research and policy initiatives addressing associations between the built environment and physical activity (PA). Given this rapid proliferation, it is important to identify priority areas and research questions for moving the field forward. The objective of...
Article
Full-text available
The restrictions introduced in response to the COVID-19 pandemic affected the regular routines of Canadians, including access to play and physical activity opportunities, while limiting social connections. In response to this, a recreation centre created take-home play kits that contained loose parts with the aim of facilitating unstructured play....
Article
Full-text available
There is evidence that higher street connectivity and availability of destinations can support walking behavior. However, the availability of data and comparability between previous studies remains a challenge. Based on a large Canadian adult sample, this study examined the associations between street layout and walking behaviors and explored wheth...
Article
Full-text available
The design and quality of the neighbourhood built environment can encourage health-supportive behaviours and support cardio-metabolic health. However, despite relationships between demographic and behavioural risk factors of metabolic syndrome being investigated by many studies, only some studies have directly estimated the associations between the...
Article
Full-text available
Play is a human right, yet opportunities for unstructured play are declining. The COVID-19 pandemic further reduced children’s play opportunities. We conducted an observational study of a novel community-based intervention (play hubs) that facilitated unstructured play by offering loose parts in parks (Calgary, Canada) during the pandemic. Our desc...
Article
Full-text available
The neighbourhood built environment can support the physical activity of adults regardless of their individual-level socioeconomic status. However, physical activity supportive (walkable) neighbourhoods may not be accessible to those with lower incomes if homes in walkable neighbourhoods are too expensive. The objectives of this study were: 1) to e...
Article
Full-text available
Accumulating evidence suggests that the built environment may be associated with cardiovascular disease via its influence on health behaviours. The aim of this study was to estimate the associations between traditional and novel neighbourhood built environment metrics and clinically assessed cardio-metabolic risk factors among a sample of adults in...
Article
Full-text available
The urban design features of a location are important for facilitating people’s attachment to places. Attachment to particular places, such as residential neighbourhoods, may encourage people to adopt and maintain physical activity routines. Moreover, the ways in which people perceive the built features in their neighbourhood (e.g., walkability) ma...
Article
This study examined the individual and joint effects of modifiable risk factors mediating the associations between socioeconomic position (SEP) and morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in a nationally representative sample of adults in Canada. Participants in the Canadian Community Health Survey (n = 289,800) were followed lon...
Article
Full-text available
Contamination of public parks by dogs is a potential source of conflict among park users, causing “tragedy of the commons” problems. Besides the social conflict, feces can pose serious health risks to both dogs and humans. In this study we analyzed the extent and patterns of the distribution of dog feces in the urban parks of the City of Calgary. W...
Data
Media release: https://www.jaist.ac.jp/english/whatsnew/press/2023/02/21-1.html
Article
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There has been a growing interest in the “metaverse,” and discourse about how this platform may contribute to different fields of science is already beginning to emerge. In this paper, we discuss key opportunities and uncertainties about how a metaverse might contribute to advancing knowledge in the interdisciplinary field of the built environment...
Data
Media release: https://www.jaist.ac.jp/english/whatsnew/press/2023/01/31-1.html
Article
Background: Adults with low incomes have lower diet quality than their higher income counterparts. In Canada, the British Columbia Farmers' Market Nutrition Coupon Program (FMNCP) provides coupons to low-income households to purchase healthy foods in farmers' markets. Objective: The objective of this study was to examine the impact of the FMNCP...
Article
Full-text available
High-quality sleep is an important factor in sustaining health and improving well-being. Previous evidence has demonstrated the positive associations between increased physical activity and reduced sedentary behaviour (SB) with sleep quality. The substitutional relationships between SB, light-intensity physical activity (LPA), and moderate-to-vigor...
Article
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Introduction Cross-sectional studies consistently find that the neighborhood built environment (e.g., walkability) is associated with walking. However, findings from the few existing longitudinal residential relocation studies that have estimated associations between changes in neighborhood built characteristics and walking are equivocal. The study...
Article
Full-text available
Background Pedometer-facilitated interventions encourage physical activity via the accumulation of steps. Mixed evidence suggests that neighborhood walkability might influence the effectiveness of physical activity interventions, including pedometer-facilitated interventions. Our study investigated the moderating effect of neighborhood walkability...
Article
Full-text available
There has been considerable interest in the effect of the built environment design on depressive symptoms. However, there are still few empirical studies on this topic, and there is a dearth of evidence among middle-aged adults. The present study examined the associations of built environment attributes with depressive symptoms among a sample of mi...
Conference Paper
Background Bicycling can be a beneficial physical activity for children; however, child and parent perceptions of bicyclist safety may influence participation. The Haddon’s Matrix breaks down the factors (human, vehicle, environment) and phases (pre-injury, injury, post-injury) that relate to injury outcomes. It has been widely used in quantitative...
Conference Paper
Background Bicycling provides health benefits but can also result in injuries. Built environment features can prevent bicycling injuries in adults; however, research on children is scarce. Additional evidence about how the built environment influences child bicycling injury is needed. Aim To assess if built environment features are associated with...
Data
Source: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-11-couch-potato-risky-business-remedies.html https://www.jaist.ac.jp/english/research/outcomes/globalpublicity.html
Article
Full-text available
Understanding the correlates of sedentary behavior among children is essential in developing effective interventions to reduce sitting time in this vulnerable population. This study aimed to identify correlates of domain-specific sedentary behaviors and objectively assessed sedentary time among a sample of children in Japan. Data from 343 children...
Article
Full-text available
New ‘big data’ streams such as street-level imagery are offering unprecedented possibilities for developing health-relevant data on the urban environment. Urban environmental features derived from street-level imagery have been used to assess pedestrian-friendly neighbourhood design and to predict active commuting, but few such studies have been co...
Preprint
Full-text available
Contamination of public parks by dogs is a potential source of conflict among park users, causing “tragedy of commons” problems. Besides the social conflict, feces can pose serious health risks to both dogs and humans. In this study we analyzed the extent and patterns of the distribution of dog feces in the urban parks of the City of Calgary. We co...
Article
Full-text available
Background There is increasing evidence demonstrating the importance of the neighbourhood built environment in supporting physical activity. Physical activity provides numerous health benefits including improvements in health-related fitness (i.e., muscular, cardiorespiratory, motor, and morphological fitness). Emerging evidence also suggests that...
Article
Full-text available
Background A diverse range of interventions increase physical activity (PA) but few studies have explored the contextual factors that may be associated with intervention effectiveness. The built environment (BE) may enhance or reduce the effectiveness of PA interventions, especially interventions that encourage PA in neighbourhood settings. Several...
Article
Full-text available
Evidence suggests that neighbourhood street connectivity is positively associated with physical activity, yet few studies have estimated its associations with sedentary behaviour. We estimated the associations between space syntax derived street integration, a novel measure of street connectivity, and sedentary behaviours among Canadian adults. Dat...
Article
Full-text available
Background Although socioeconomic status (SES) has been shown to modify associations between the neighborhood built environment and physical activity, contradictory results exist. Objectives of this cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis were to: 1) examine whether overall neighborhood walkability and specific built characteristics were associat...
Article
Interventions such as painted designs on school tarmacs may increase children’s physical activity during school hours. This mixed-methods study examined the influence of a painted designs (e.g., traditional games, random circles) intervention on the physical activity experiences of elementary school children. Systematic observations and acceleromet...
Article
Full-text available
Objectives Food insecurity is inadequate or insecure access to food due to financial constraints. Individuals experiencing food insecurity tend to have poorer diet quality compared to their food secure peers. Given the importance of maintaining healthful dietary patterns for optimal glycemic control, food insecurity is a considerable barrier to man...
Article
Full-text available
Objectives Improving diet quality among low-income populations remains a public health priority. In Canada, the British Columbia (BC) Farmers’ Market Nutrition Coupon Program (FMNCP) aims to improve the diet quality of low-income households by providing coupons to purchase healthy foods from BC farmers’ markets. This randomized controlled trial, co...
Article
Full-text available
There has been growing interest in the role of pet ownership, particularly dog ownership, in managing noncommunicable diseases. The built environment can act as a facilitator or barrier to owning a dog or dog walking. Nevertheless, limited studies conducted in different geographical contexts have examined how the built environment can influence dog...
Article
Full-text available
Background Walkability is a popular term used to describe aspects of the built and social environment that have important population-level impacts on physical activity, energy balance, and health. Although the term is widely used by researchers, practitioners, and the general public, and multiple operational definitions and walkability measurement...
Article
Full-text available
The workplace spatial environment has been identified as one of the correlates of workers’ active and sedentary behaviours. This study examined the associations of perceived workplace layout design with workers’ active and sedentary behaviour in office workers in Japan. Participants in this study (n=2,265) were recruited from a nationwide online su...
Article
Full-text available
Background: Health promotion interventions incorporating wearable technology or eHealth applications can encourage participants to self-monitor and modify their physical activity and sedentary behavior. In 2020, a Calgary (Canada) recreational facility developed and implemented a health promotion intervention (Vivo Play Scientist program) that pro...
Preprint
BACKGROUND Health-promotion interventions incorporating wearable technology or eHealth apps can encourage participants to self-monitor and modify their physical activity and sedentary behavior. In 2020, a Calgary (Alberta, Canada) recreational facility developed and implemented a health-promotion intervention (Vivo Play Scientist program) that prov...
Data
Source: https://www.behealthylivinglab.com/post/dog-walking-dog-ownership-social-capital
Data
Source: https://www.behealthylivinglab.com/post/dog-walking-dog-ownership-social-capital
Article
During the COVID-19 pandemic, public health authorities have recommended outdoor activity while physical distancing. Quantitative evidence demonstrates reductions in physical activity have occurred during the early stages of the pandemic, yet other evidence on the use of outdoor recreational spaces, such as parks is mixed. Our qualitative study exp...
Article
Full-text available
Workplace settings – both internal and external – can influence the extent to which workers are physically active or sedentary. Although research has identified some indoor environmental attributes associated with sitting at work, few studies have examined associations of workplace neighbourhood built-environment attributes with workplace sitting t...
Data
Source: https://www.behealthylivinglab.com/post/built-environment-design-cancer-prevention-inequality
Data
Source: https://www.behealthylivinglab.com/post/built-environment-design-cancer-prevention-inequality
Article
Academics use ‘walkability’, ‘healthy’, ‘bikeability’, ‘vibrancy’, and ‘livability’ to describe neighbourhood design that support health and wellbeing. These labels are communicated in the media and real estate and land development marketing materials, yet residents may not use these labels when describing their neighbourhoods. Our qualitative stud...
Article
Introduction Regular physical activity provides numerous health benefits. The neighbourhood built environment is important for supporting physical activity. Despite higher physical activity among public transit users, the effect of introducing Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) services on physical activity remains unclear. We undertook a natural experiment w...
Article
Full-text available
Background Walking is associated with the built environment, however, this association may be biased by residential self-selection. This study examined how walking duration changed with residential relocation, while accounting for unbalanced covariates that may contribute to residential self-selection, using two different propensity score inverse p...
Article
Background Few studies have investigated potential links between the built environment and health-related fitness, even though there is some evidence linking neighbourhood built environments to physical activity behaviors and chronic health conditions. Methods Following PRISMA guidelines eight databases were searched from inception to August 2020...
Article
Full-text available
Objectives The COVID-19 pandemic changed daily routines, including physical activity, which could influence physical and mental health. In our study, we describe physical activity and sedentary behaviour patterns in relation to the pandemic and estimate associations between anxiety and physical activity and sedentary behaviour in community-dwelling...
Article
Full-text available
In this interdisciplinary article, we provided an evidence-based discussion on the role of the supportive built environment on cancer prevention. We also extended the theoretical thinking on the built environment-cancer links by raising possible equality challenges. Following the recent call in population-level interventions in cancer prevention, o...