Older adults' perceptions of physical activity in the urban neighborhood

Abstract This paper aimed to explore the different dimensions in understanding the neighborhood environment from the perspective of the elderly and to describe their opinions in performing physical activity in a neighborhood environment in Tehran. Ekhtiarieh neighborhood in District Three in the city of Tehran was selected as the context of the study. The purposive sampling method was used to select the participants who were all older adults engaging in physical activities (PA) directly or indirectly in the neighborhood environment. In-depth interviews were employed to learn more about older adults' perceptions of physical activity in the neighborhood. For spatial assessment, each interviewee was asked to draw a map of their community to determine the locations, routes, and boundaries of physical activity and meaningful destinations in the neighborhood. The results indicated that city nodes in neighborhood environments were very effective points in physical activity. These nodes included shopping centers, green spaces, neighborhood parks, and playgrounds in the neighborhood. The analysis of the data indicated the health of the active elderly and the sense of place and emotions as main themes.