The walkability of a neighborhood is closely related to residents’ travel behavior and daily life and, ultimately, their health and wellbeing. Although existing studies in this area have reached some enlightening conclusions, few of them have considered residents’ travel attitudes and preferences, or the mediating role of commute mode. Do travel attitudes and preferences matter in the relationship between neighborhood walkability and residents being obese? How does commute mode work as a mediator? To answer these questions, based on the 2019 travel survey data in Guangzhou, this paper uses the Multilevel Linear Model (MLM) to examine the association between neighborhood walkability and residents’ body mass index (BMI). Furthermore, the Mediation Model is used to identify the mediating role of commute mode in the relationship between walkability and BMI. The results show that (1) travel attitudes and preferences do affect the individual’s BMI through the mediator of commute mode. (2) After controlling the individual socio-demographics and travel attitudes and preferences, neighborhood walkability has a significant negative effect on BMI. Meanwhile, walkability has a significant positive effect on the use of non-private motorized commute modes. Non-private motorized commute modes have a significant negative effect on BMI. (3) The mediating effect of commute mode in the relationship of neighborhood walkability with the individual’s BMI is significant. The proportion of mediation is 32.90%. Insights into the relationship between neighborhood walkability, commute mode, and individual BMI highlight the importance of walkable neighborhoods that encourage people to use healthy commute modes.

中文翻译：

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邻里步行能力如何影响肥胖？通勤模式的中介作用

社区的步行性与居民的出行行为和日常生活密切相关，并最终与他们的健康和福祉息息相关。尽管该领域已有的研究已经得出了一些启发性的结论，但很少有人考虑到居民的出行态度和偏好，或者通勤方式的中介作用。旅行态度和偏好在社区步行性和居民肥胖之间的关系中是否重要？通勤模式如何充当调解员？为回答这些问题，本文基于2019年广州市出行调查数据，采用多层次线性模型（MLM）检验街区步行性与居民体重指数（BMI）之间的关联。此外，中介模型用于确定通勤模式在步行性和BMI之间的关系中的中介作用。结果表明：（1）出行态度和偏好确实通过通勤方式的中介影响个体的BMI。(2)在控制了个体社会人口学和出行态度和偏好后，邻里步行性对BMI有显着的负向影响。同时，步行性对非私人机动通勤模式的使用具有显着的积极影响。非私人机动通勤模式对 BMI 有显着的负面影响。(3)通勤方式在邻里步行性与个体BMI关系中的中介作用显着。调解比例为32.90%。洞察邻里可步行性、通勤模式、