Health behaviours and environmental perceptions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Abstract

Between 2019 and 2022, Australia faced an unprecedented sequence of disasters: the Black Summer bushfires and the COVID-19 pandemic. These events resulted in significant changes to daily life. Restrictions on social and economic activities led to reduced urban mobility. Increases in working from home (WfH) reduced opportunities for incidental physical activity (PA) in commuting, while closure of recreation centres limited intentional PA. While the bushfires brought the issue of air quality (AQ) to the fore, AQ is suggested to have improved during the lockdown restrictions. This thesis examines the impact of these events on Sydney residents' health behaviours and environmental perceptions.

The first chapter examines changes in people's AQ perceptions and concerns for health, ether side of the 2019–2020 bushfires and the first lockdowns in Sydney. This chapter also determines whether spatially-linked exposures to air pollution are associated with peoples AQ perceptions and concerns. The findings show increased AQ concern for health in 2020, likely due to the bushfires and general environmental concerns.

The second chapter explores changes in PA behaviours during and after the COVID-19 lockdowns compared to pre-pandemic levels. Overall, weekly minutes of PA increased in 2021, but the proportion of participants meeting PA guidelines decreased, due to a decrease in weekly sessions. Those not meeting PA guidelines pre-pandemic increased their overall PA in 2020 and 2021, while those who were meeting guidelines in 2019 reduced their PA in both 2020 and 2021.

The third chapter presents a review of interventions promoting PA and health in WfH settings. Limited evidence of interventions suggests the need for further research in this area, as WfH is likely to continue even COVID-19 associated restrictions are relaxed. Workplace health promotion strategies need to adapt to these changing circumstances.