Quiz Adds Fun to Housing Research

How do your home and community affect your day-to-day quality of life?

An interactive quiz from Home Matters takes visitors through a series of simple questions on the importance of home. Answers connect with facts and related citations, such as the facts shown below.

Stable, affordable housing decreases moving within the same city (sometimes called "churning"). With less churning, students are better positioned to thrive in their schools. (Kingsley, Jordan, and Traynor. "Addressing Residential Instability: Options for Cities and Community Initiatives." Cityscape 14(3): 161-184. Cunningham and MacDonald. 2012. "Housing as a Platform for Improving Education Outcomes among Low-Income Children. What Works Collaborative, Urban Institute.)

 Your neighborhood influences your children's education almost as much as the school they attend. Of course, teacher expertise, school resources and student supportive services all contribute too, but so does your neighborhood. A better community usually means better grades and better graduation rates. (Owens. 2010. "Neighborhoods and Schools as Competing and Reinforcing Contexts for Educational Attainment." Sociology of Education 83: 287-311. Jargowsky and El Komi. 2009. "Before or After the Bell? School Context and Neighborhood Effects of Student Achievement." CALDER Working Paper 28. National Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Educational Research, Urban Institute.)

People who take public transportation often get the recommended daily 30 minutes of exercise walking to and from bus stops and train stations, which also reduces stress levels and saves money. (Besser and Dannenberg. 2005. "Walking to Public Transit: Steps to Help Meet Physical Activity Recommendations." Am J Prev Med 29(4): 273–280.)

 

Experts have found that parks serve as an important setting for more social interaction, which increases trust, cooperation and the overall health of all residents. (Cohen, Inagami, and Finch. 2008. "The Built Environment and Collective Efficacy." Health and Place 14: 198-208.)