Disentangling the influence of neighborhood type and self-selection on driving behavior: an application of sample selection model

The causality issue has become one of the key questions in the debate over the relationships between the built environment and travel behavior. Although previous studies have tested statistical and/or practical significance of the built environment on travel behavior, few have quantified the relativ...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Transportation (Dordrecht) 2009-03, Vol.36 (2), p.207-222
Main Author: Cao, Xinyu (Jason)
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Applied sciences
Attitudes
Automobiles
Built environment
California
Causality
Economic Geography
Economic growth
Economics
Economics and Finance
Engineering Economics
Exact sciences and technology
Ground, air and sea transportation, marine construction
Innovation/Technology Management
Land use
Logistics
Marketing
Neighborhoods
Neighbourhoods
Organization
Regional/Spatial Science
Smart growth
Studies
Transport
Transportation
Treatment effect
U.S.A
Urban development
Urban environments
Variables
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The causality issue has become one of the key questions in the debate over the relationships between the built environment and travel behavior. Although previous studies have tested statistical and/or practical significance of the built environment on travel behavior, few have quantified the relative roles of the built environment and residential self-selection in influencing travel behavior. Using 1,479 residents living in four traditional and four suburban neighborhoods in Northern California, this study explores the causal effect of neighborhood type on driving behavior and its relative contribution to the total influence of neighborhood type. Specifically, this study applied Heckman’s sample selection model to separate the effect of the built environment itself and the effect of self-selection. The results showed that, on average, the effect of neighborhood type itself on driving distance was 25.8 miles per week, which accounted for more than three quarters of the total influence of neighborhood type and 16% of individuals’ overall vehicle miles driven. These results suggest that the effect of the built environment on driving behavior outweighs that of self-selection. This paper also discussed the advantages and weaknesses of applying the Heckman’s model to address the self-selection issue.
ISSN:0049-4488
1572-9435
DOI:10.1007/s11116-009-9189-9