SUMMARY
An anthropological comparison of
Czech and Macedonian
adolescents
Mgr. Lucia
Minovská
Department of
Anthropology and Hygiene
Key words:
The Czech Republic, Macedonia, comparison, adolescents,
biological and social characteristics.
I spent ten years of
my childhood in Macedonia, in a country which differs from the Czech Republic
in many aspects and I have chosen the subject of my thesis due to their
uniqueness and cultural diversity. According to the anthropological and cultural differences
between these two nations I have decided to make an analysis of the
biological and psychosocial characteristics of adolescents in the Czech
Republic (Olomouc) and Macedonia (Bitola).
The main aim of my thesis is to build an integral idea of the developement
of young people (somatic developement, health condition, life style) under the current social and cultural conditions in these countries.
The research is focused on measurement of basic physical parameters of
secondary school students (height, weight, waist and hip circumference) which
will be used for the calculation of particular anthropometrical indexes such as
the body fat percentage, body mass index and waist to hip ratio index. Body
mass index is a numerical value which expresses the relationship between height and
weight and correlates very closely to body fat percentage. It has been used
to define underweight, normal
weight, overweight or obese. Waist-to-hip ratio index looks at the proportion
of body fat stored around waist and hips. A man's body is typically more
"apple" shaped because it tends to collect fat especially around the
stomach area. By contrast, woman´s body is more "pear" shaped as it
tends to collect more fat on the hips.
The thesis is also focused on several physiological characteristics such as
blood presure, pulse, vital capacity, onset of menstruation etc.
The main methods of my research will be measurements and
a questionnaire investigation covering these areas: hobby, nutrition,
living, studying, values, habits, sexuality and health problems. The number of
students from each country will be about 400 at the age from 15 to 19 years,
devided into groups due to nationality, type of school, sex and age category.
The chosen schools are: grammar school, secondary medical school and secondary
technical school.
Data gathered at the secondary schools in Macedonia will be compared with
data from the secondary schools in the Czech Republic. The result of my thesis will be statistical analysis and
comparison of the findings established in both countries. Finally I will
present the practical use of the obtained data in the Czech Republic and in
Macedonia as well.