Intra-household decisions and the impact of the built environment on activity-travel behavior

Abstract

Featuring the most direct and closest social relationships, the household plays a crucial role in influencing an individual's wants, needs, and behavior. However, the role of intra-household decisions in the connection between the built environment and activity-travel behavior has not been systematically analyzed. This paper adds to the literature by: (1) proposing a conceptual framework explaining how intra-household decisions are related to activity-travel behavior, the built environment, and attitudes; (2) synthesizing the current literature on this topic; and (3) identifying gaps in the literature and suggesting avenues for future research. In particular, we focus on the relationships between intra-household decisions and (changes in) travel attitudes, residential self-selection, and residential dissonance. Based on the results of the literature review, we found that very few studies have explored the extent to which the residential built environment meets and satisfies the travel needs and preferences of different household members, and how these contribute to different activity-travel behaviors. As attitudes may vary over time, capturing changes in attitudes and activity-travel behavior of different members of a household during and after residential relocation is recommended for future research to understand the role of intra-household decisions in the relationship between attitudes, built environment, and activity-travel behavior.