Longitudinal Study of Neighborhood Social Event Attendance at Renovated Parks and Changes in Sleep, Stress, and Well-being

Community-engaged Intervention to Optimize the Impact of Renovated Neighborhood Parks on Community Wellbeing

The goal of this study is to learn whether participating in community social and cultural events in renovated neighborhood parks can improve sleep, stress, mood, and overall well-being in adults aged 18 and older who live near participating parks.

The main questions the study aims to answer are:

1. Does participation in community park events lead to improvements over time in sleep, stress, mood, and other aspects of well-being?
2. Are greater levels of event participation associated with greater improvements in these outcomes?

Participants will:

• Wear a wearable ring device (Oura Ring) most of the time for about six months to measure sleep and physical health indicators
• Attend free community events at or near their neighborhood park, such as social, cultural, or physical activity programs
• Complete online surveys at the beginning and end of the study about well-being and mental health
• Complete brief weekly surveys on mood and study park use
• Attend two in-person visits for basic physical measurements (e.g., height, weight, blood pressure) and device setup/return

Study Overview

• Status: Active, not recruiting
• Conditions: Quality of Life; Sleep; Well-being; Mental Health; Loneliness; Mood; Stress (Psychology)
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Community Park Event Participation

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 100
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • New York
    • New York, New York, United States, 10027
      • Center for Systems and Community Design, City University of New York Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Be 18 years of age or older
• Live within 1 mile of a participating neighborhood park site
• Be able to read and understand English
• Have regular access to a smartphone
• Be willing and able to wear a wearable ring device continuously for approximately 6 months
• Plan to attend at least one community park event during the study period

Exclusion Criteria:

• Those that do not meet above inclusion criteria

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Prevention
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Intervention / Treatment

Experimental: Participation in Community Park Events; Participants are adults living near participating neighborhood parks who are enrolled in a study evaluating the health and well-being effects of participation in community-based park events. Participants are encouraged and incentivized to attend free social, cultural, and physical activity events over the study period. In addition, participants wear a wearable device and complete surveys to assess changes in sleep, physiological indicators, and psychosocial well-being over time.

Behavioral: Community Park Event Participation; Participants are encouraged to attend free community-based events, including social, cultural, and physical activity programming held in their local neighborhood parks. These events are organized and implemented by the research team in collaboration with local vendors and are designed to promote community engagement and support health and well-being. Actual attendance may vary across participants, and participation is supported through incentives.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Total sleep duration	Total sleep duration (in seconds) will be measured using a wearable ring device and will be computed as the sum of total sleep in REM (rapid eye movement), deep, and light sleep stages. Sleep duration will be converted to hours and minutes for analysis. The outcome will assess within-participant change in average nightly sleep duration over time.	From enrollment until one month after park events conclude

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Total time in bed	Total time in bed (in seconds) will be measured using a wearable ring device and will be computed as the sum of total sleep in REM (rapid eye movement), deep, and light sleep stages, plus time awake. Total time in bed will be converted to hours and minutes for analysis.	From enrollment until one month after park events conclude
Sleep efficiency	Proportion of time spent asleep while in bed (total sleep duration / total time in bed).	From enrollment until one month after park events conclude
REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep duration	Total sleep in the REM (rapid eye movement) stage (in seconds) measured using a wearable ring device. REM sleep duration will be converted to hours and minutes for analysis, as well as the proportion of total sleep (REM sleep duration / total sleep duration).	From enrollment until one month after park events conclude
Deep sleep duration	Total sleep in the deep sleep stage (in seconds) measured using a wearable ring device. Deep sleep duration will be converted to hours and minutes for analysis, as well as proportion of total sleep duration (deep sleep duration / total sleep duration).	From enrollment until one month after park events conclude
Light sleep duration	Total sleep in the light stage (in seconds) measured using a wearable ring device. Light sleep duration will be converted to hours and minutes for analysis, as well as proportion of total sleep duration (light sleep duration / total sleep duration).	From enrollment until one month after park events conclude
Sleep timing	The timing of sleep (hour and minute sleep starts to hour and minute sleep ends) measured using a wearable ring device.	From enrollment until one month after park events conclude
Heart rate variability	Heart rate variability (in milliseconds) measured during sleep using a wearable ring device.	From enrollment until one month after park events conclude
Resting heart rate	Resting heart rate (in beats per minute) measured during sleep using a wearable ring device.	From enrollment until one month after park events conclude
Respiratory rate during sleep	Nighttime respiratory rate (in breaths per minute) measured using a wearable ring device.	From enrollment until one month after park events conclude
Skin temperature deviation	Nightly skin temperature deviation (in Celcius) from baseline measured using a wearable ring device.	From enrollment until one month after park events conclude
Well-being (WHO-5 Well-Being Index)	Self-reported well-being measured using the World Health Organization-Five (WHO-5) Well-Being Index. Index scores range from 0-25, with higher scores representing higher quality of life.	Weekly assessments from enrollment until one month after park events conclude
Perceived stress (PSS-10)	Self-reported perceived stress measured using the 10-item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10). Scale scores range from 0-40, with higher scores representing higher perceived stress.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Anxiety symptoms (GAD-7)	Self-reported anxiety symptoms measured using the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7). Scale scores range from 0-21, with higher scores representing higher anxiety.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Depressive symptoms (PHQ-9)	Self-reported depressive symptoms measured using the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). Scale scores range from 0-27, with higher scores representing higher depression severity.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
General well-being (General Well-Being Schedule)	Self-reported overall well-being and psychological functioning measured using the 18-item General Well-Being Schedule (GWBS). Scale scores range from 0-110, with higher scores representing better well-being.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Life satisfaction (SWLS)	Self-reported life satisfaction measured using the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS). Scale scores range from 5-35, with higher scores representing higher life satisfaction.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Flourishing (Flourishing Scale)	Self-reported psychological flourishing measured using the Flourishing Scale. Scale scores range from 8-56, with higher scores representing higher meaning and fulfillment.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Loneliness	Self-reported loneliness measured using items from the 20-item UCLA Loneliness Scale. Scale scores range from 20-80, with higher scores representing greater feelings of loneliness.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Social cohesion	Perceived neighborhood cohesion and trust measured using items from the collective efficacy scale. Scale scores range from 5-25, with higher scores representing higher social cohesion and trust.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Sense of community	Sense of community measured using the Sense of Community Index (SCI-2). Scale scores range from 0-72, with higher scores representing a stronger sense of community.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Neighborhood satisfaction (NEWS)	Individual survey item from the Neighborhood environment walkability scale (NEWS): "How satisfied are you with your neighborhood as a good place to live"? with response options: strongly dissatisfied, somewhat dissatisfied, neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, somewhat satisfied, and strongly satisfied.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Place attachment	Survey items developed by the study team. I would be sorry if the park closed permanently (response options: strongly disagree, disagree, neither agree nor disagree, agree, strongly agree) I would be sorry to move out of my neighborhood (response options: strongly disagree, disagree, neither agree nor disagree, agree, strongly agree) Is there a strong feeling of belonging in your neighborhood? (response options: not at all, a little, a medium amount, quite a lot, very much)	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Body mass index	Body mass index (in kilograms per meters squared) calculated from measured height and weight (weight in kilograms / height in meters squared).	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Systolic blood pressure	Systolic blood pressure measured using standard procedures	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Diastolic blood pressure	Diastolic blood pressure measured using standard procedures.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude
Park use frequency	Self-reported frequency of park use, adapted from previously validated measures: Veitch, J. et al. A natural experiment to examine the impact of park renewal on park-use and park-based physical activity in a disadvantaged neighbourhood: The REVAMP study methods. BMC Public Health 14, 600 (2014). Walker, J. T. et al. Physical activity in the park setting (PA-PS) questionnaire: Reliability in a California statewide sample. J. Phys. Act. Health. https://doi.org/10.1123/jpah.6.s1.s97 (2009).	Weekly assessments from enrollment until one month after park events conclude
Park use duration	Self-reported duration of park use, adapted from previously validated measures: Veitch, J. et al. A natural experiment to examine the impact of park renewal on park-use and park-based physical activity in a disadvantaged neighbourhood: The REVAMP study methods. BMC Public Health 14, 600 (2014). Walker, J. T. et al. Physical activity in the park setting (PA-PS) questionnaire: Reliability in a California statewide sample. J. Phys. Act. Health. https://doi.org/10.1123/jpah.6.s1.s97 (2009).	Weekly assessments from enrollment until one month after park events conclude
Park satisfaction	Single survey item asking study participants how satisfied they are with the overall quality of the park. (Response options: Strongly satisfied, somewhat satisfied, neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, somewhat satisfied, strongly satisfied). Adapted from previously validated survey items: Veitch, J. et al. A natural experiment to examine the impact of park renewal on park-use and park-based physical activity in a disadvantaged neighbourhood: The REVAMP study methods. BMC Public Health 14, 600 (2014).	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Weight	Weight in kilograms measured using standard procedures.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude.
Height	Height in meters measured using standard procedures.	At enrollment and one month after park events conclude.

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: City University of New York, School of Public Health
• Collaborators: National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Terry T.-K. Huang, PhD, MPH, MBA, Center for Systems and Community Design, City University of New York Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): June 4, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): January 31, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): January 31, 2027

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 1, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 8, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): July 13, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): July 13, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 8, 2026
• Last Verified: July 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavior; Personal Satisfaction; Psychological Well-Being
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2022-0549-PHHP; R01MD018209 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: YES
• IPD Plan Description: All data will be available upon reasonable request.

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No