Environmental and Psychosocial Barriers Affect the Active Commuting to University in Chilean Students

Antonio Castillo-Paredes, Natalia Inostroza Jiménez, Maribel Parra-Saldías, Ximena Palma-Leal, José Luis Felipe, Itziar Págola Aldazabal, Ximena Díaz-Martínez and Fernando Rodríguez-Rodríguez
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Antonio Castillo-Paredes: Grupo AFySE, Investigación en Actividad Física y Salud Escolar, Escuela de Pedagogía en Educación Física, Facultad de Educación, Universidad de Las Américas, Santiago 8370035, Chile
Natalia Inostroza Jiménez: Área Salud, Universidad Tecnológica de Chile INACAP, La Serena 1700000, Chile
Maribel Parra-Saldías: IRyS Research Group, School of Physical Education, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Valparaíso 2374631, Chile
Ximena Palma-Leal: IRyS Research Group, School of Physical Education, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Valparaíso 2374631, Chile
José Luis Felipe: School of Sport Sciences, Universidad Europea de Madrid, 28670 Madrid, Spain
Itziar Págola Aldazabal: School of Sport Sciences, Universidad Europea de Madrid, 28670 Madrid, Spain
Ximena Díaz-Martínez: Quality of Life Research Group in Different Populations, Department of Education Sciences, Universidad del Bíobío, Chillan 3800949, Chile
Fernando Rodríguez-Rodríguez: IRyS Research Group, School of Physical Education, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Valparaíso 2374631, Chile

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 4, 1-14

Abstract: Biking and walking are active commuting, which is considered an opportunity to create healthy habits. Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the main environmental and psychosocial barriers perceived by students, leading to less Active Commuting (AC) to university and to not reaching the Physical Activity (PA) recommendations. Material and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 1349 university students (637 men and 712 women) were selected. A self-reported questionnaire was applied to assess the mode of commuting, PA level and barriers to the use of the AC. Results: Women presented higher barriers associated with passive commuting than men. The main barriers for women were “involves too much planning” (OR: 5.25; 95% CI: 3.14–8.78), “It takes too much time” (OR: 4.62; 95% CI: 3.05–6.99) and “It takes too much physical effort “ (OR: 3.18; 95% CI: 2.05–4.94). In men, the main barriers were “It takes too much time” (OR: 4.22; 95% CI: 2.97–5.99), “involves too much planning” (OR: 2.49; 95% CI: 1.67–3.70) and “too much traffic along the route” (OR: 2.07; 95% CI: 1.47–2.93). Psychosocial barriers were found in both sexes. Conclusions: Psychosocial and personal barriers were more positively associated with passive commuting than environmental barriers. Interventions at the university are necessary to improve the perception of AC and encourage personal organization to travel more actively.

Keywords: active; commuting; active transport; physical activity; active behavior; college (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

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