To date, efforts to encourage outdoor play have often focused on one or a few factors. For example, by adapting the physical environment or through parents. However, individual factors cannot fully explain outdoor play behaviour. A comprehensive overview of the factors and how they interact with one another is therefore needed.
60 factors identified
The authors Maartje Willeboordse, Jorien Slot-Heijs, Mark Noordzij and Amika Singh of the Mulier Institute arrive in the study ‘Outdoor play in perspective’ at a list of 60 factors that influence outdoor play behaviour, divided into thirteen themes, such as:
- individual characteristics, such as age;
- neighbourhood characteristics, such as degree of urbanisation;
- social environment, such as the presence of other children;
- characteristics of play areas, such as the quality of play equipment;
- parents’ perception of safety.
Factors influence one another
The factors are not only related to outdoor play behaviour, but also influence one another. Moreover, the importance of particular factors may vary depending on the context, for example from one neighbourhood to another. To encourage outdoor play, it is therefore important to collaborate across different domains and work in a context-specific way.
Literature review of factors influencing outdoor play
A literature review was used to map factors that may be related to the outdoor play behaviour of children aged 4–12. These are described in this report. It also describes how follow-up research can provide further insight into the interrelationships between the factors by using a systems approach.