Introduction: The creation of supportive environments for health is a basic action principle of health promotion, and equity is a core value. A settings approach offers an opportunity to bridge these two, with its focus on the interplay between individual, environmental and social determinants of health.
Methods: We conducted a scoping review of the literature on theoretical bases and practical applications of the settings approach. Interventions targeting social inequities in health through action on various settings were analyzed to establish what is done in health equity research and action as it relates to settings.
Results: Four elements emerged as central to an equity-focused settings approach: a focus on social determinants of health, addressing the needs of marginalized groups, effecting change in a setting's structure, and involving stakeholders. Each came with related challenges. To offer potential solutions to these challenges we developed a conceptual framework that integrates theoretical and methodological approaches, along with six core guiding principles, into a 'settings praxis'.
Conclusions: Reducing social inequities in health through the creation of supportive environments requires the application of the settings approach in an innovative way. The proposed conceptual framework can serve as a guide to do so, and help develop, implement and evaluate equity-focused settings-related interventions.
Keywords: health promotion; research; social inequities.