The purpose of this project is to understand how African American youth and parents living in subsidized public housing in Houston, TX perceive their environments for physical activity (PA) with the goal of identifying influential factors driving PA choices and decisions in families. Qualitative and quantitative methods will be used to collect data, including in-depth interviews with 72 parents and 12 focus groups with youth. In addition, 24 families will be randomly selected from the 72 to participate in a mapping and Photovoice project to better understand youth’s perceptions and increase community involvement in the research. Photovoice is a method that allows participants to record and express their community’s strengths and weaknesses through photography. It is a qualitative, community-based participatory methodology in which individuals use photographs to describe their every day realities to highlight and bring attention to concerns that can be addressed through policy.
