Canadian children’s independent mobility during the COVID-19 pandemic: a national survey

Independent mobility (IM) is associated with children’s physical activity and indicators of social, motor, and cognitive development. We surveyed Canadian parents of 7- to 12-year-olds (n = 2291) about social-ecological correlates of IM in the second wave of COVID-19 (December 2020). We used multi-variable linear regression models to identify correlates of children’s IM. Our final model (R² = 0.353) included four individual-, eight family-, two social environment- and two built environment-level variables. The correlates of boys’ and girls’ IM were similar. Our findings suggest that interventions to support children’s IM in a pandemic context should target multiple levels of influence.