This paper focuses on the identification of constants of a centrosymmetric isotropic elastic homogeneous Cosserat continuum using the solutions of different static and dynamic boundary-value problems. Application of the homogenization method to the models of heterogeneous materials and the related limitations on the use of the homogeneity hypothesis in the study of edge effects are discussed. A comparative analysis of scale length parameters is made for combinations of model constants obtained experimentally and those used in theoretical studies. It is shown that essential couple-stresses effects are displayed mainly in the boundary layers whose thickness is comparable with the scale length parameters of a particular material modeled by the Cosserat continuum.