Jóvenes en la sociedad del miedo: miradas sobre medios, miedos y jóvenes en el Ecuador

ResumenSe plantea un análisis de la mirada de miedo e inseguridad que los medios de comunicación construyen en relación a los y las jóvenes y a las culturas juveniles en el Ecuador. A partir dela referencia al tratamiento del incendio de la discoteca Factory en el transcurso de un concierto de rock en abril del 2008, en la ciudad de Quito. La mirada de los medios contribuye a la construcción del miedo social hacia las personas jóvenes. Finalmente, se plantea que la mirada de los estudios culturales en relación con temas de juventud permite superar formas tradicionales de tratar este tema, precisamente por su naturaleza interdisciplinar.Palabras clave: culturas juveniles, jóvenes, medios de comunicación, miedo social, Ecuador.AbstractAn analysis on the view of fear and insecurity that mass media builds in relation with young people and juvenile cultures from the analysis of the treatment of the fire at the “Factory” discotheque duringa rock concert in Quito on April 2008, is proposed. It is proposed that the mass media’s outlook contributes to the social construction of the social fear towards young people. Finally, it is stated thatthe perspective of cultural studies on youth topics break off traditional forms of dealing with the topic due to tis interdisciplinary nature.Keywords: juvenile cultures, youth, mass media, social fear, Ecuador.

Quality of Life Profile, Overweight-Obesity and Sedentary Behavior in Elementary and High School Children of Guanacaste

The purpose of this study was to identify the quality of life profile, overweight-obesity and sedentary behavior in a group of elementary and high school children of Guanacaste. 635 students participated in the study. The participants completed a protocol by which they were anthropometrically evaluated, and also filled up a questionnaire related to sedentary behavior and quality of life. In general, the findings reflected a prevalence of overweight and obesity of 13, 9%. The most important sedentary activities were, in descending order, the small screen (watching TV, video games, computer), and certain social and cultural activities. The self-reported quality of life index was within acceptable limits but not exceeding 80 points on a scale of 1-100. There was no significant relationship between the rate of the overall quality of life, overweight, obesity and some sedentary behaviors, although some anthropometric parameters like percentage of body fat and body weight showed significant correlation with sedentary behavior and specific aspects belonging to quality of life. The study provides valuable information to health authorities, directors of educational institutions and parents about key issues related to child development.