A Case Study of a Natural Experiment Bridging the ‘Research into Policy’ and ‘Evidence-Based Policy’ Gap for Active-Living Science
Year: 2019
Type: article
Abstract: The translation of research into tangible health benefits via changes to urban planning policy and practice is a key intended outcome of academic active-living research endeavours. Conversely, policy-makers and planners identify the need for policy-specific evidence to ensure policy decisions and practices are informed and validated by rigorously established evidence. In practice, however, these two aspirations rarely meet and a research-translation gap remains. The RESIDE project is a unique longitudinal natural experiment designed to evaluate the health impacts of the 'Liveable Neighbourhoods' planning policy, which was introduced by the Western Australian Government to create more walkable suburbs. This commentary provides an overview and discussion of the policy-specific study methodologies undertaken to quantitatively assess the implementation of the policy and assess its active living and health impacts. It outlines the key research-translation successes and impact of the findings on the Liveable Neighbourhoods policy and discusses lessons learnt from the RESIDE project to inform future natural experiments of policy evaluation.
Authors: Paula Hooper, Sarah Foster, Billie Giles-Corti
Institutions: The University of Western Australia, RMIT University
Language: English
Subfield: Transportation
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,824
Awards: G186761032, Sustainability and urban design: An evaluation of the impact of liveable neighbourhoods, The policy and practice of designing healthy, equitable higher density, G5002484117, Building urban planning and health evidence to inform policy and practice that creates healthy, liveable and equitable communities designed to prevent non-communicable diseases, G870428040
OpenAlex ID: W2960118036