Exploring the causal effects of bicycling for transportation on mental health

Few studies have investigated how transportation-related bicycling might contribute to better mental health. We investigated the effects of utilitarian bicycling frequency on psychological distress and life satisfaction, and explored the possible causal mechanisms, using large and statewide representative survey data from Victoria, Australia. Propensity score methods were applied to balance treatment and control groups, effectively reducing the selection bias that potentially confounds the causal effects. This study finds that occasional bicycling was not significantly associated with mental health, while regular bicycling was negatively associated with psychological distress and positively associated with life satisfaction. This study also finds that physical activity levels, physical health conditions, and neighborhood physical environment do not fully mediate the effects of utilitarian bicycling on mental wellbeing. These findings support the policies of promoting transportation bicycling to improve population mental health, and highlight the potential role of regular bicycling in combating psychological distress and improving life satisfaction.

Automated summary

The study found that regular bicycling was negatively associated with psychological distress and positively associated with life satisfaction, while occasional bicycling was not significantly associated with mental health. Factors such as physical activity levels, physical health conditions, and neighborhood physical environment did not fully mediate the effects of utilitarian bicycling on mental wellbeing.