Associate professor, PhD L.E. Pakhomova¹
Dr.Hab., Professor V.N. Irkhin¹
PhD L.A. Kadutskaya^1
1Belgorod State National Research University, Belgorod

Keywords: pupils, health factors and behavior, health school.

Introduction. The school age period is characterized by anatomical, physiological and psychological changes that lay the foundations and outlook for future prospects [1, 2, 4, 5]. Looking at it from a scientific point of view, the issue resides in principal resolution of a conflict between the recognition of essential healthy living skills acquisition by the younger generation and the deficient considerations of a pupils’ specific behavior patterns, self-rated physical fitness, attitude toward physical education and impact of social living environments.

Objective of the research was to identify the factors that determine health and health-promotion behavior of schoolchildren of various age-sex groups.

Materials and methods. The method of mass public opinion poll was used in the research within the framework of the international project program “Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children” (HBSC). 3786 boys and 4315 girls from the Central Federal District of the Russian Federation (Belgorod, Moscow) were surveyed. These were the schoolchildren of three age groups: 11-year-olds (2541 people), 13-year-olds (2963 people), and 15-year-olds (2597 people). The method comprised automated processing of obtained data using a special application software. Besides, data and materials of the regional educational experiment on establishment of health schools in the Belgorod Region for the period from 2004 to 2014 were analyzed.

Results and discussion. Factor analysis was used in order to reveal key factors conditioning health and behavior of schoolchildren of different age-sex groups. Factor matrix analysis involved consideration of variables that have factor loadings higher than 500 (as absolute value). Variables having factor loadings lower than 0.100 were not considered. Data analysis of the poll, conducted among 11-year-old boys, revealed thirteen formally extracted factors out of 55 factors in total (the number of factors equals the number of variables); another two factors had loadings greater than 0.500 (as absolute value). The common factor (“Physical activity”) incorporated eight variables with a positive correlation. Factor weight amounted to 15.9 percent. The common factor consisted of variables reflecting the boys’ rating of their physical fitness, knowledge and experiences in the field of physical education, sports achievements compared to that of their age mates’. The second factor (“Motivation”) weighed 7.7 percent and consisted of one variable characterizing the reason for participating in sports activities: significance in terms of future profession. Boys perceive physical activities as a foundation for vocational success; however, the motivation list did not include such aspects as “one’s health improvement”, “ability to control one’s own body”, etc. 11-year-old girls pointed out the following incentives for exercising: winning; being like famous athletes; for the future career purposes. They are usually prone to call attention to show and approve themselves; seek to achieve success. As in case with boys, girls do not associate sports with health improvement. Another six factors were extracted; each comprised one or two variables which had greater loadings. Thus, the second factor (7 percent) included the variable “Negative feelings” (desperation); the third factor (5.7 percent) – taking part in sports and other activities as the grounds for meeting friends; the fourth factor (4.6 percent) involved two variables: assessment of school achievements, potential and capacity for studying; the fifth factor “Positive feelings” (3.8 percent) identified optimism and self-confidence (girls experienced desperation more frequently and badly); the sixth factor “Physical development” (3.3 percent) included one variable: considering one’s own weight to be excess; the thirteenth factor “Hunger” (2.4 percent) was represented by one variable: a pupil often goes to bed supperless because of food shortage.

Three blocks of variables were analyzed within the poll conducted among 13-year-old boys; the factor “Motivation” included variables describing the reasons why the respondents took part in sports activities (winning; pursuance of iconic athletes’ image). The analysis of the factor “Bad habits” revealed the boys’ tendency toward frequent alcohol consumption resulting in alcohol poisoning. The factor “Physical development” gave an indication of the boys’ self-assessment regarding their body mass, which they consider to be too low to be normal. The common factor “Physical activity” (21.4 percent) was represented by the same variables as in factors extracted in the previous poll carried out among 11-year-olds (though factor loadings were different). The second factor “Negative feelings” (9.6 percent) stood for anxiety, panic attacks and desperation. The third factor “Motivation” involved the significance of sports activities in terms of future profession; pleasing parents. The fourth factor is “Hunger” (6.6 percent). The fifth factor “School environments” (6.5 percent) comprised the following variables: estimation of the form tutor’s opinion regarding the school achievements and accomplishments of a pupil as compared to achievements of other pupils; sense of security in school (having positive scale growth; results varied from that of the girls’ poll results). The sixth factor “Physical development” (5.9 percent) was represented by a variable characterizing the girls’ self-rating in relation to their weight recognized as excess.

Data analysis of the questionnaire completed by 15-year-old boys, revealed five factors out of 64 factors in total; three of them had loadings greater than 0.500 (as absolute value). These were the first, second and third factors. The rating of feasible achievements and attainments in the future turned out to be the most relevant (life values): gaining social respect, good health, enjoying one's job, getting one’s own apartment, well-paid job, starting a happy family and free choice of residence. Such indicators as “higher and vocational secondary education”, “best friends” were not ranked among the life values. The underlying structure of the common factor comprised two blocks of interrelated variables, so it may be considered to be standing for life values and personal physical activity. The factor “Bad habits” (14.5 percent) incorporated six variables with positive and negative correlations reflecting the boys’ attitude to alcohol and drug consumption; the tendency toward frequent alcohol consumption resulting in alcohol poisoning was observed. The fifth factor “Negative feelings” (6.7 percent) included variables describing emotional states: anxiety and desperation. It is likely that the boys try to cope with stress by consuming alcohol and taking drugs. The analysis of the questionnaire conducted among 15-year-old girls within the common factor (12.3 percent) showed that, unlike boys, girls tend to be more concerned with sports achievements. The factor “Bad habits” (6.8 percent) revealed that girls are prone to consuming alcohol more frequently and in substantial amounts, as opposed to tobacco smoking. Views on drugs are characterized by the same variables as in case with the boys. The factor “Negative feelings” (4.8 percent) showed that girls often experience anxiety and desperation. Probably, it is due to intense intellectual work during academic activities, fatigue and lack of certitude in relation to stated objectives that matter to them.

Factor analysis data correspond to the results of the educational experiment on health schools establishment in the Belgorod Region. The analysis revealed that the pupils studying in health schools have higher health and health culture levels. The concepts of health pedagogics can only be fully implemented in suchlike educational institutions that wend its way to establish educational systems geared to form, preserve and promote pupils' health. The issue of rising the health culture level in pupils was tackled through introduction of health classes, valeological content to the school subjects; organization of non-academic valeological activities for pupils to develop their moral qualities. The findings show positive outcomes in all sixteen health schools for the last ten years: the number of teenagers with smoking habit have decreased by 5 percent; the seventh and ninth graders have become more responsible for their own health for the last three years (the indicator increased by 9 percent); health rating within the life values system has shifted to the head of the list (at the beginning of the experiment “health” was rated ninth by 72 percent of respondents; at the end of the experiment, 89 percent of respondents considered it to be of primary importance). The GTO (Ready for Labour and Defence) sport complex, introduced in the Belgorod Region on September 1, 2014 as pilot project, became extra incentive for attending school physical education lessons. By 2015, over 100,000 pupils had been involved in the GTO qualification tests.

Conclusions. Basic factors with underlying variables characterizing behavior patterns and health of boys and girls of different age-sex groups have been revealed. The common factor comprised variables describing physical activity of schoolchildren of all age-sex groups. The positive attitude of senior pupils toward bad habits caused by negative feelings (such as anxiety and desperation) gave rise to a considerable concern. One of the key factors beneficially influencing health and behavior pattern of boys and girls of different age-sex groups in Belgorod is establishment of integrated educational systems of health schools. The GTO sport complex, introduced in the Belgorod region on September 1, 2014 as a pilot project, has become a factor of the large-scale involvement of schoolchildren in physical training. The obtained data might serve as a foundation for developing new technologies of healthy lifestyle formation in schoolchildren of different age-sex groups and will eventually contribute to strategic issue resolution aimed at health improvement nationwide.

References

1. Bal'sevich V.K. Ocherki po vozrastnoy kineziologii cheloveka (Essays on human developmental kinesiology) / V.K. Balsevich. – Moscow: Sovetskiy sport, 2009. – 220 p.
2. Campbo U S.B. Behavior problems in preschool children: clinical and development issues / U S.B. Campbo. – New York: Gilford Press, 1990. – 284 р.
3. King A. The Health of Youth: a Cross-National Survey: A Report of the 1993-94 Survey Results of Health Behaviour in School-aged Children / A. King. – WHO Cross-National Survey. – WHO, European Series, 1996. – 222 р.
4. Komkov A.G., Kirillova E.G., Bart S.D. Assessment of Physical Activity Level in School-Aged Children and Effectiveness of Physical Education Curriculum II Second Annual Congress of the Eruopean College of Sport Science / A.G. Komkov, E.G. Kirillova, S.D. Bart. – I Book of Abstracts I. Denmark, 1997. – Р.196-197.
5. Morgan W.P. Physical Activity and Mental Health // In The Academy Papers / W.P. Morgan: Champaign, H.K., 1994. – Р. 132-145.

Corresponding author: pakhomova@bsu.edu.ru

Abstract

Objective of the article was to identify the factors that determine health and health-promotion behavior of pupils of 11, 13 and 15 years of age according to the mass public opinion poll conducted in compliance with the program of the international project «Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children» (HBSC); analyze the experiment material on establishing health schools in the Belgorod region for the last 10 years. The total number of subjects was more than 10,000 pupils.

There were allocated from 2 to 6 factors depending on the age and sex. The general factor included variables that characterize physical activity, self-rating of physical fitness level and physical education knowledge of pupils. In secondary school there was detected the bipolar structure of the general factor, where physical activity indicators had a significantly high correlation with life values. There were found the factors that characterize the positive attitude of the senior pupils to bad habits. It was established that designing integral educational systems of health schools is one of the major factors that are good for the behavior and health of adolescents. The pilot version of the "Ready for Labour and Defence" (GTO) complex introduced in the Belgorod region on September 1, 2014 has become a factor of the large-scale involvement of schoolchildren in physical training.