The Callison Intergenerational Connection Index™ (CI²™)
The Callison Intergenerational Connection Index is a research-based framework for measuring cross-generational participation, interaction depth, and belonging in public space.
The Three Laws
If adults don’t participate, the space isn’t intergenerational.
If you design for supervision, you get separation.
Connection can and must be measured.
The Four Pillars of CI²™
The CI²™ framework evaluates public spaces through four observable dimensions of cross-generational engagement. These pillars move beyond attendance and satisfaction metrics to assess whether a space is truly fostering shared experience.
1. Co-Participation Rate
What it measures:
The percentage of adults physically participating in activity alongside children or other generations.
Why it matters:
A space is not intergenerational if adults remain observers. Co-presence is passive. Participation is relational.
How it’s calculated:
Adults physically active ÷ (Active + Supervising Adults)
This metric reveals whether design encourages engagement or reinforces perimeter supervision.
2. Shared Duration
What it measures:
The length of time cross-generational groups remain actively engaged together.
Why it matters:
Connection changes behavior. When families stay longer — and remain engaged — it signals emotional investment and design resonance.
How it’s evaluated:
Observed interaction windows + documented stay patterns during structured observation periods.
Extended shared duration indicates stickiness, not just usage.
3. Return Rate
What it measures:
Frequency of repeat visits by multi-generational family units or cross-age groups.
Why it matters:
Belonging produces ritual. Spaces that support intergenerational connection become recurring destinations, not one-time visits.
How it’s tracked:
Repeat-visit survey data, demonstration site reporting, and longitudinal participation tracking where available.
Return behavior reflects whether connection is durable.
4. Emotional Engagement
What it measures:
Observable indicators of relational depth and positive affect.
Why it matters:
Connection is visible. It shows up as laughter, encouragement, assistance, celebration, and adult-initiated play.
How it’s captured:
Structured Social Interaction Audits log:
Shared laughter events
Verbal encouragement
Physical assist moments
Celebratory gestures
Adult initiation of play
These behaviors are weighted and compiled into an Engagement Depth Index.
Emotional engagement transforms presence into belonging.
Together, these four pillars create a composite Intergenerational Interaction Score. Rather than asking whether a park is used, the CI²™ framework asks whether it is shared.
Attendance measures occupancy.
CI²™ measures connection.
Services Connected to CI²™
The Callison Intergenerational Connection Index™ (CI²™) is not a theoretical construct. It is an applied research and advisory framework used in professional education, consulting, and public-sector engagement.
CI²™ is delivered through:
Keynote presentations at national and regional conferences
Workshops for parks, planning, and recreation leaders
Advisory engagements with municipalities and design teams
Research briefings and published field reports
Strategic consulting focused on measurable intergenerational design outcomes
Through these services, CI²™ provides communities with a structured methodology for evaluating cross-generational participation, interaction depth, and belonging in public space.
The framework is presented as part of professional education and research services and is offered in connection with speaking engagements, consulting, and published analytical reports.
CI²™ is used in commerce in connection with educational services, research services, and advisory consulting related to public space design and intergenerational engagement.