Peer-reviewed article
A scoping review of children's and adolescents' active travel in China.
Kong F ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This scoping review examined research on active travel (walking or cycling to school) among Chinese children and adolescents. It found 16 quantitative studies, mostly conducted between 2017 and 2023, with the majority using cross-sectional designs and self-reported data. Most studies focused on urban children and looked at factors that influence active travel or its links to physical activity. The review identifies significant gaps in research quality and calls for stronger study designs, device-based measurement, and evaluation of interventions to increase active travel.
Key points
- Of 6,178 records screened, only 16 studies met inclusion criteria, with 75% published from 2017 to 2023
- 93.8% of studies were cross-sectional, and 87.5% relied on self-reported travel behavior
- 81.3% of studies focused on urban school-aged children, with only 18.8% including mixed urban-rural samples
- 56.3% of studies examined correlates of active travel, 43.8% assessed health outcomes, and 25.0% reported prevalence
- No studies used device-based measures to capture travel modes, and mixed findings on fitness benefits suggest the need for more rigorous outcome measurement
Limitations
This is a scoping review of existing research rather than an evaluation of an intervention, so it cannot provide direct evidence about what works to increase active travel in China. The review is limited to quantitative studies published in English, which may exclude relevant research in Chinese or using qualitative methods.
Abstract
Background/objective Active travel (AT) is a frequent and feasible source of daily physical activity for school-aged youth; however, no comprehensive synthesis has mapped the evidence for China. This scoping review aimed to characterize the current research landscape on AT among children and adolescents in China and identify gaps to guide future research and policy. Methods This study searched five databases (Web of Science, PubMed, SPORTDiscus, MEDLINE, and ERIC) from inception to 1 December 2025. Quantitative studies in English that examined AT among Chinese children and adolescents were included. The reviewer screened records, extracted data, and summarized study characteristics, measures, and topics. Results Of the 6,178 records screened, 16 met the inclusion criteria. Publications have increased notably in recent years, with 75.0% appearing from 2017 to 2023. The majority of studies were cross-sectional (93.8%), and one was longitudinal (6.3%). Travel behavior was predominantly self-reported (87.5%), with device-based measures used to capture activity in 12.5% of studies, and none of the studies used devices to capture travel modes (0%). Studies primarily focused on school-aged children/adolescents in urban settings (81.3%), with a minority spanning mixed urban-rural samples (18.8%). By topic, 56.3% examined correlates, 43.8% assessed health or physical activity outcomes, and 25.0% reported AT prevalence. Conclusion Research on AT in China is growing; however, it remains dominated by cross-sectional, self-reported studies, highlighting the need for stronger designs and measures to generate decision-ready evidence. Future studies should prioritize standardized, device-based measures, longitudinal or quasi-experimental designs, and rigorous evaluations of multicomponent and infrastructure interventions that have proven effective in increasing school-based AT. Equity-focused sampling across urban-rural contexts and broader health outcomes (including mental health) is also needed, while leveraging established individual, family, and built-environment correlates to guide policy and practice in China. Moreover, mixed findings on fitness benefits suggest that careful outcome selection and a robust causal design are essential.