The vegetation relevés stored electronically in the Czech National Phytosociological Database are reviewed. The database was established in 1996, with the central database located in the Department of Botany, Masaryk University, Brno (www.sci.muni.cz/botany/database.htm). On 15 November 2002 this central database contained 54,310 relevés from the Czech Republic, collected by 332 authors between 1922–2002. Ca. 54% of the relevés were taken from published papers or monographs, 21% from theses and the rest from various unpublished reports and field-books. These relevés include 1,259,008 records of individual plant species. Territorial coverage of the country by the reléves is irregular as the areas with attractive natural or semi-natural vegetation are more intensively sampled, with gaps in coverage of less attractive or poorly accessible areas. Most relevés are of broad-leaved deciduous forests (Querco-Fagetea), meadows (Molinio-Arrhenatheretea), dry grasslands (Festuco-Brometea), and marsh grasslands (Phragmito-Magnocaricetea). The quality of the data is discussed, such as researcher bias, preferential selection of sampling sites, spatial autocorrelation and missing values for some data elements.
This paper reviews the data on quaternary palynological sequences collected in the Czech Republic, attempts to store them in the Czech Quaternary Palynological Database (PALYCZ) and outlines a possible use for regional syntheses. Work on pollen stratigraphies done over the last hundred years has yielded a very large amount of data for this region. These data can be used globally for various types of environmental reconstructions and are of local importance, especially when combined with local databases. For data to be included in PALYCZ it has to meet certain criteria, the determination of the pollen of herbaceous plants must be well resolved and radiocarbon dated. As of 31 December 2008, we had reviewed 177 pollen profiles. Data from 152 sequences are already stored in PostgreSQL® in relational tables, which allow a broad range of queries to be addressed using the html protocol. The data collected since 1959 by 15 authors contain raw pollen counts together with 14C dates and various metadata on locality. All the pollen samples were ordered using non-metric multidimensional scaling. Display of the ordination diagram incorporating the appropriate millennial time slices revealed a common pattern in all data. The quality of data is also discussed in the context of the history of the research and methods used. Database access can be found at http://botany.natur.cuni.cz/palycz.
The article focuses on adult education in the Czech Republic. It begins by defining the institutional context of adult education in the country. Three institutional characteristics are of particular interest in this respect: returns to education, the current level of education of the adult population (and the related demand for adult education), and institutions offering adult education. Using the LFS and AES surveys, the authors find that it is primarily young and educated persons who pursue adult education. With respect to the returns to adult education, the results show that adult education does not protect against downward mobility but does increase the odds of upward mobility. The positive effect of adult education on upward mobility is more pronounced among women than men.
The development of the nematode Spinitectus inermis (Zeder, 1800), a parasite of the stomach of eels, Anguilla anguilla (L.) in Europe, was experimentally studied. Mayfly nymphs Caenis macrura, Ecdyonurus dispar, Heptagenia sulphurea, Potamanthus luteus and Seratella ignita from Portugal and the Czech Republic were found to serve as experimental intermediate hosts. After ingestion of the nematode eggs by the mayfly nymphs, the toothed first-stage larvae were released and penetrated into the body cavity of the intermediate host. There they moulted twice (on day 4 and 6 post infection [p.i.] at water temperatures of 20-25°C), attaining the third infective stage. The definitive host, A. anguilla, undoubtedly acquires infection by feeding on mayfly nymphs harbouring infective-stage larvae. In an experimentally infected eel, the fourth-stage larva undergoing the third moult was observed 28 days p.i. at water temperature of 20ºC. The larval stages, including moulting forms, are described and illustrated. The prepatent period of S. inermis is estimated to be about two months.
Ligula intestinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) is a tapeworm parasite with a worldwide distribution that uses a wide variety of fish species as its second intermediate host. In the present study, we investigated the prevalence and population genetic structure of plerocercoids of L. intestinalis in five common cyprinoid species, roach Rutilus rutilus (Linnaeus), freshwater bream Abramis brama (Linnaeus), white bream Blicca bjoerkna (Linnaeus), bleak Alburnus alburnus (Linnaeus), and rudd Scardinius erythrophthalmus (Linnaeus), collected in six water bodies of the Czech Republic (Milada, Most, Medard, Jordán, Římov and Lipno). Of the six study sites, the highest frequency of parasitism was recorded in Lake Medard (15%). The overall prevalence rate among the species was as follows: roach > rudd ≥ freshwater bream > bleak > white bream. Two mitochondrial genes (cytb and COI) were used to compare the population genetic structure of parasite populations using selected samples from the five fish species. The results of the phylogenetic analysis indicated that all populations of L. intestinalis were placed in Clade A, previously identified as the most common in Europe. At a finer scale, haplotype network and PCoA analyses indicated the possible emergence of host specificity of several mtDNA haplotypes to the freshwater bream. Moreover, pairwise Fixation indices (FST) revealed a significant genetic structure between the parasite population in freshwater bream and other host species. Parasite populations in roach not only showed the highest rate of prevalence but also depicted a maximum number of shared haplotypes with populations from bleak and rudd. Our results suggest that recent ecological differentiation might have influenced tapeworm populations at a fine evolutionary scale. Thus, the differences in prevalence between fish host species in different lakes might be influenced not only by the parasite's ecology, but also by its genetic diversity.
Objectives.This study attempts to introduce the Driving Locus of Control (DLoC), a method focused on the internal or external source of at-tribution of the driving behaviour, to the Czech context. This study also relates DLoC to atti-tudes towards autonomous vehicles (AVs).Participants and setting.Out of the general population, 59 inquirers personally interviewed (CAPI) 1 065 respondents (49% women) in the age range between 15 and 92 years (M = 50, SD = 17). The respondents were sampled via multi-stage random sampling procedure, based on the list of addresses in the Czech Republic.Hypotheses.The authors hypothesised to rep-licate the original two-factor structure of the DLOC Scale and that the higher levels of inter-nal DLoC result in not considering the improve-ment in traffic safety as the AVs replace human drivers.Statistical analysis.Confirmatory factor analy-sis was used to analyse the factor structure of DLoC Scale. Hypotheses related to the empiri-cal validity of the method were assessed via structural equation modelling. Reliability of DLoC Scale was calculated in terms of internal consistency (McDonald coefficient).Results.Confirmatory factor analysis revealed reasonably good support for structural valid-ity of the one-dimensional DLoC-CZ15 factor model (χ2 = 426.967, df = 90, CFI = 0.964, TLI = 0.958, SRMR = 0.066, RMSEA = 0.065). In addition, the one-dimensional DLoC-CZ15 factor model showed acceptable internal con-sistency - ω = 0.9 (95% CI [0.89, 0.91]). The structural equation modelling found a relation-ship between DLoC and some of the items cap-turing attitudes towards AVs, too.Study limitations.The analysed data were ob-tained via interviews between respondents and inquirers. As a result, the study does not contain indicators of empirical validity measured by a methodologically different approach, such as an observation of driving behaviour. and Problém. Tato studie uvádí Driving Locus of Control (DLoC), metodu zaměřenou na atribu-ovaný zdroj chování při řízení, do českého kon-textu. Dále pak tato studie ověřuje vztah DLoC k postojům k autonomním vozidlům (AV).Metoda. 59 tazatelů osobně oslovilo (metoda CAPI) 1 065 respondentů z obecné populace (49% žen) ve věkovém rozmezí od 15 do 92 let (M = 50, SD = 17). Respondenti byli vybráni pomocí vícestupňového náhodného výběru na základě seznamu adres v České republice.Hypotézy.Autořipředpokládali replikaci pů-vodní dvoufaktorové struktury škály DLoC. Současně předpokládali, že vyšší úroveň inter-ního DLoC nesouvisí s očekáváním zlepšení bezpečnosti provozu, když AV nahradí lidské řidiče.Analýza dat. K analýze faktorové struktury metody byla použita konfirmační faktorová analýza. Hypotézy týkající se empirické vali-dity metody byly ověřeny pomocí strukturního modelování. Reliabilita škály DLoC ve smyslu vnitřní konzistence byla vypočítána pomocí Mc-Donaldova koeficientu.Výsledky. Konfirmační faktorová analýza při-nesla adekvátní podporu strukturní validity jednorozměrného faktorového modelu DLoC--CZ15 (χ2 = 426,967, df = 90, CFI = 0,964, TLI = 0,958, SRMR = 0,066, RMSEA = 0,065). Navíc jednorozměrný faktorový model DLoC--CZ15 vykázal přijatelnou vnitřní konzistenci – ω = 0,9 (95% CI [0,89; 0,91]). V rámci struktur-ního modelování byla zjištěna souvislost mezi DLoC a částí položek zachycujících postoje k AV.Limity studie.Analyzovaná data byla získána prostřednictvím rozhovorů mezi respondenty a tazateli. V důsledku toho studie neobsahuje indikátory empirické validity měřené metodolo-gicky odlišným přístupem, například pozorová-ním chování při řízení.
A syntaxonomical revision of dry grasslands of the alliances Bromo pannonici-Festucion pallentis, Festucion valesiacae and Koelerio-Phleion phleoidis (class Festuco-Brometea) in the natural biogeographical region of the Western Carpathians and northern Pannonian Basin is presented. A geographically stratified data set of 2686 relevés from the south-eastern Czech Republic, northeastern Austria, Slovakia and northern Hungary was divided into 25 clusters using a modified TWINSPAN algorithm. The proposed classification simplifies and unifies the previous syntaxonomical systems, which differ in these four countries. Main environmental gradients responsible for variation in species composition of theses grasslands were revealed by detrended correspondence analysis and interpreted using indicator values. The major pattern of variation reflects soil nutrient availability and moisture, which are negatively correlated with soil reaction.
Studie představuje výsledky výzkumu zaměřeného na psychologické dopady spojené s epidemií covid-19 v České republice v průběhu měsíců březen–květen 2020. Cílem studie je sledovat a popsat dynamiku psychologických ukazatelů v čase, s ohledem na vývoj situace v ČR – od prvního nárůstu počtu nakažených a výrazných restrikcí, přes kulminaci a ústup první vlny epidemie, až k pomalému návratu do stavu uvolněných restrikcí. Výzkum pracuje se souborem 2716 respondentů ve věku 18–89 let, kteří se zúčastnili on-line dotazníkového šetření, případně byli dotazováni trénovanými výzkumnými asistenty (zejm. v případě seniorů a dalších osob, kteří neměli přístup k internetu). Výzkumná data zahrnovala deskriptivy účastníků a výsledky psychologických testů zaměřených na emoční stavy respondentů, jejich psychický nepokoj (distres) a přítomnost úzkosti a deprese. Tyto psychologické ukazatele byly sledovány jak v celém souboru, tak ve skupinách podle pohlaví a věku. Výsledky dokládají, že nastalá epidemická situace souvisela s výrazným nárůstem negativního emočního prožívání, se symptomatikou psychického nepokoje, úzkostí a depresí, a to až do období kulminace. Poté bylo zaznamenáno postupné zlepšování psychického stavu dotazovaných osob. Negativní dopady byly výraznější v populaci mladších dospělých a v populaci žen. Výsledky poukazují také na rozdílnosti v míře reportovaného stresu u izolovaných osob, které byly dotazovány zprostředkovaně (asistenty), oproti osobám, které reportovaly svůj stav přímo do dotazníku. V případě nezprostředkovaného dotazování byly hodnoty negativních psychických ukazatelů vyšší, oproti osobám, které byly dotazovány asistenty. and The study presents the results of a screening focused on the psychological impact associated with the outbreak and further development of COVID-19 pandemic in the Czech population during March – May 2020. The aim of the study was to investigate temporal dynamics of psychological impact covering the first wave of the epidemic, i.e., first phases of the epidemic growth, culmination, decrease, and slow return to a normal lifestyle. The sample of 2716 respondents aged between 18 and 89 years participated in an online survey from March 18th to May 25th, 2020; part of them (typically seniors and others, who had not access to the internet) were assisted in entering the data by trained interviewers. The survey comprised questionnaires capturing emotional states, psychological disturbance, anxiety, and depression. The changes in the scores by pandemic phase (time frame) were studied for the whole sample and for gender and age groups. The results show that the threat of COVID-19 caused a significant increase in negative emotional experience and in the symptoms of psychological disturbance, anxiety, and depression in the Czech population in time of infection culmination, even when the spread of the pandemic was well controlled, and then a gradual decline over time. The data indicated that the pandemic situation had a more pronounced impact on women and younger adults. The study also showed that in situations of pandemic stress associated with isolation, when isolated people are interviewed about their mental state, their reports on negative experiencing might be significantly reduced compared to direct anonymous selfreports data entry.
This article deals with empirical research on poverty in Czechoslovakia from the interwar period to the present in terms of three distinct phases. First, between 1918 and 1948, considerable attention was devoted to poverty, but research possibilities modest, so that a complex mapping of the problem was not feasible. Second, during the 1948 to 1989 period, the communist regime allowed “examinations” of poverty for the purpose of depicting pre-war capitalist Czechoslovakia as an impoverished, class-divided society. A similar approach was applied to studies of Western countries during the Cold War period. Research on poverty within the socialist regime was not allowed, even after the rehabilitation of sociology as a social science. Detailed analysis of household surveys was either forbidden or the results were embargoed; only simple cross-tabulations were ever published. Third, after 1989, the opportunities for undertaking research on poverty increased dramatically due to stimulus in both the national and international arenas. Important projects were fielded leading to many studies and published articles. Statistical surveys were used to map poverty primarily in terms of income; while sociological, ethnographic and anthropological approaches were used to examine key groups affected by poverty in Czech society. Within the literature there has been to date no synthesis of the study of the nature and origins of poverty in the Czech Republic.
The so-called opposition agreement was concluded by the Czech Social Democratic Party (ČSSD) and the Civic Democratic Party (ODS) after the Chamber of Deputies elections of 1998. It paved the way for a ČSSD minority government in 1998–2002. To present day, it continues to represent one of the most contested moments of the country’s post-communist political history. Both general awareness and the publicist discourse are dominated by a categorically negative, accusatory evaluation of the agreement as a deviation from the democratic framework, a catalyst of systemic corruption and clientelism, and a source of deep scepticism and political disaffection in the Czech general public. While scholarly literature also features strongly critical attitudes to the opposition agreement, there have been a number of works which compared it to the ways minority governments were formed and operated in other countries or which studied the circumstances of its formation and how the situation evolved. Such works have argued that the opposition agreement was a relatively standard case of minority government with under-developed institutional support.
The present study is based on the continual data from surveys of the Public Opinion Research Centre. It deals with the ways public opinion responded to the opposition agreement at the time of its formation and perceived the political situation and overall development in 1998–2002, comparing it to the preceding and subsequent time periods. The empirical evidence shows that most citizens perceived the opposition agreement negatively in general, and especially as the details of its formation have been blurred by the growing time distance from the June 1998 elections. Such negative perceptions,
along with the aftermath of the 1997–1999 economic crisis, gave rise to phenomena such as a considerable decline of popular support for the ČSSD, decreasing trust in government, and growing political discontent between September 1998 and the end of 1999. However, evidence from studies that focused more specifically on the opposition agreement demonstrates that the public attitudes to the opposition agreement were not negative en bloc.
Moreover, the 2000–2002 period saw an apparent shift towards positive attitudes. At the same time, the attitudes to economic and political realities changed considerably throughout the era. The negative trends that prevailed in the first half of the election cycle, and especially in 1999, were replaced by a positive trend as the country overcame the post-1997 economic recession. At the end of the era, the ČSSD and its minority government were perceived as successful by a much broader segment of the population than just the social democratic constituency or left-wing voters in general. These circumstances were probably responsible for the ČSSD’s election victory in 2002, while negative attitudes to the opposition agreement had ceased to play a major role by that time.