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SOCIOECONOMIC DETERMINANTS OF MENARCHE IN RURAL POLISH GIRLS USING THE DECISION TREES METHOD

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 January 2011

STANISŁAW MATUSIK ,
TERESA ŁASKA-MIERZEJEWSKA  and
MARIA CHRZANOWSKA
STANISŁAW MATUSIK
Affiliation:
Statistics and Computer Science Division, Academy of Physical Education, Cracow, Poland
TERESA ŁASKA-MIERZEJEWSKA
Affiliation:
‘Halina Konopacka’ Higher School of Physical Culture and Tourism, Pruszków, Poland
MARIA CHRZANOWSKA
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Academy of Physical Education, Cracow, Poland
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Summary

The aim of this study was to assess the usefulness of the decision trees method as a research method of multidimensional associations between menarche and socioeconomic variables. The article is based on data collected from the rural area of Choszczno in the West Pomerania district of Poland between 1987 and 2001. Girls were asked about the appearance of first menstruation (a yes/no method). The average menarchal age was estimated by the probit analysis method, using second grade polynomials. The socioeconomic status of the girls' families was determined using five qualitative variables: fathers' and mothers' educational level, source of income, household appliances and the number of children in a family. For classification based on five socioeconomic variables, one of the most effective algorithms CART (Classification and Regression Trees) was used. In 2001 the menarchal age in 66% of examined girls was properly classified, while a higher efficiency of 70% was obtained for girls examined in 1987. The decision trees method enabled the definition of the hierarchy of socioeconomic variables influencing girls' biological development level. The strongest discriminatory power was attributed to the number of children in a family, and the mother's and then father's educational level. Using this method it is possible to detect differences in strength of socioeconomic variables associated with girls' pubescence before 1987 and after 2001 during the transformation of the economic and political systems in Poland. However, the decision trees method is infrequently applied in social sciences and constitutes a novelty; this article proves its usefulness in examining relations between biological processes and a population's living conditions.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Biosocial Science , Volume 43 , Issue 3 , May 2011 , pp. 257 - 269
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

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