Family support and the built environment as determinants of active school commuting among adolescents in Chile

Background Active school commuting (ASC) offers an opportunity to integrate physical activity into adolescents’ daily routines while supporting healthier and more sustainable mobility systems. However, its prevalence remains low in many middle-income countries, and evidence on its determinants in Latin American contexts is limited. Objective This study aimed to examine whether family-related factors (parental physical activity and parental support) and environmental conditions play a more prominent role than individual adolescent characteristics in explaining active school commuting among Chilean adolescents. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted with 91 parent–child dyads from secondary schools in the Maule region of Chile. Student variables included physical activity (PAQ-A), body composition, academic performance, and mental health indicators (DASS-21). Parental characteristics included regular physical activity, while family support was assessed through parental permission to walk to school. Environmental variables included distance to school and perceived neighborhood characteristics derived from the ALPHA questionnaire. Binary logistic regression analyses identified factors associated with ASC. Results Overall, 23.1% of students reported commuting to school using active modes. Greater distance to school was associated with a lower likelihood of ASC (OR = 0.54; 95% CI: 0.31–0.96). In contrast, parental regular physical activity (OR = 4.32; 95% CI: 1.13–16.56) and parental permission to walk to school (OR = 4.73; 95% CI: 1.31–17.11) were positively associated with ASC. Student characteristics were not significantly associated with commuting mode. Conclusions ASC among Chilean adolescents appears to be primarily associated with family support and environmental factors. Strategies to promote ASC may benefit from combining improvements in walkability with initiatives that strengthen parental support for adolescents’ independent mobility.