Taru Feldt

Sense of coherence and health: evidence from two cross-lagged longitudinal samples

We explored the stability of sense of coherence (SOC) and the relationship between SOC and health in two cross-lagged longitudinal samples by using structural equation modeling. In Study 1, comprising 577 municipal male and female employees, SOC was found to be stable in both sexes. In women, SOC significantly predicted sickness absences in the 4-year follow-up period. A low SOC, but not a high SOC, was associated with health prospects. Surprisingly, SOC did not influence sickness absences among men. Study 2 further tested the relationship between SOC and health in 320 male technical designers. Although SOC was cross-sectionally associated with psychological and somatic health complaints, it did not predict later health complaints in a 5-year follow-up. Thus, the present study supports the dispositional character of SOC in both sexes and its predictive validity among women. No support was found to the salutogenic status of SOC and an unexpected gender difference was revealed.

A mediational model of sense of coherence in the work context: a one‐year follow‐up study

The aim of this study was to test a mediational model appropriate for explaining the effects of psychosocial work characteristics (influence at work, job insecurity, organizational climate and leadership relations) on general well-being, (psychosomatic symptoms) and on occupational well-being (emotional exhaustion at work) via sense of coherence (SOC) in a one-year follow-up study. The questionnaire data were gathered in four Finnish organizations in February 1995 and 1996. Altogether 219 employees participated in the study in both years. The results, based on structural equation modelling, showed that a good organizational climate and low job insecurity were related to strong SOC, which was, in turn, linked to a high level of general as well as occupational well-being. In addition, those employees who experienced changes in organizational climate and leadership relations during the follow-up period, showed changes in SOC which was, in turn, related to changes in the well-being indicators. The results thus highlight the major role of a good organizational climate for enhancing SOC and, consequently, well-being. Copyright

The role of sense of coherence in well-being at work: Analysis of main and moderator effects

Abstract The aim of this cross-sectional study was to investigate the role of the sense of coherence (SOC) as a main effect on well-being and also its possible moderating role in the relationship between work characteristics and well-being in a sample of Finnish technical designers (n = 989). MANOVA/MANCOVA analysis with hierarchical decomposition was used so that the demographic variables (age, occupation gender) were controlled throughout. The results offered strong support for a main effect model of SOC: the stronger the SOC, the lower the level of psychosomatic symptoms and emotional exhaustion. Also, some support for a moderating role of SOC on the relationships between perceived work characteristics and well-being was found. However, these relationships explained only a small proportion of the variance of well-being was found. However, these relationships explained only a small proportion of the variance of well-being indicators. These results showed that the strong SOC subjects seemed to be better ...

Testing the effort-reward imbalance model among Finnish managers: the role of perceived organizational support.

The present study is aimed at examining the combined effects of effort-reward imbalance (ERI), overcommitment (OVC), and perceived organizational support (POS) on turnover intentions and work engagement, among Finnish managers (n = 1,301). Consequently, the study contributes to the research literature by examining how the ERI-outcomes relationship was dependent simultaneously on OVC and POS. The results showed that ERI x OVC x POS interaction was significant only for turnover intentions. The ERI-turnover intentions relationship was strongest under conditions of high OVC and low POS. In addition, the relationship between ERI and decreased work engagement, especially dedication, was strengthened among overcommitted managers, compared to their less committed counterparts. Altogether, the results indicate that interventions aimed at reducing turnover intentions and increasing work engagement by increasing ERI should consider OVC and POS.

Recovery experiences as moderators between psychosocial work characteristics and occupational well-being

Abstract This study examined the direct and moderator roles of recovery experiences (psychological detachment from work, relaxation, mastery, and control) in the relationship between psychosocial work characteristics (i.e. time demands, job control, and justice of the supervisor) and occupational well-being (need for recovery, job exhaustion, and work engagement). The study was conducted among 527 Finnish employees from several occupational sectors who were employed in a variety of different jobs. Of the employees, 53% were women and the average age was 42.4 years. The moderated hierarchical regression analyses showed that psychological detachment and mastery were protective mechanisms against increased need for recovery in a situation of lack of job control. Also, relaxation protected against increased job exhaustion under high time demands. In addition, recovery experiences – psychological detachment and mastery in particular – had direct links to occupational well-being. Altogether, the study findings suggest that recovery experiences play a significant role in maintaining well-being at work.

Longitudinal factor analysis models in the assessment of the stability of sense of coherence

The present study examined the stability of sense of coherence using longitudinal factor analysis models. Sense of coherence was measured by Antonovsky’s [Antonovsky, A. (1987a). Unraveling the mystery of health. How people manage stress and stay well. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.] short-form (13-item) Orientation to Life Questionnaire (OLQ). Analyses were carried out using one-year follow-up data consisting of 219 Finnish employees working in four organizations. A three-step analytic procedure was used. First, a one-factor, a three-factor, and a second-order factor model were specified and compared separately in two measurements. Second, the stability of the constructs in the three alternative models were tested by longitudinal factor analysis models. Third, changes in the level of the latent factors over time were studied. The results showed that the three-factor and the second-order factor model fitted the data better than the one-factor model. Sense of coherence was also found to be a moderately stable personality factor across the one-year period. Mean changes in the latent factors (i.e., total sense of coherence and its three components) over time were not found.

Job demands–resources model in the context of recovery: Testing recovery experiences as mediators

The aim of the present study was to extend the original Job Demands–Resources (JD-R) model by taking into account recovery as an important mediation mechanism between work characteristics and well-being/ill-health. Specifically, we examined whether recovery experiences—strategies promoting recovery—might have a mediating role in the JD-R model among 527 employees from a variety of different jobs. The results showed that psychological detachment fully mediated the effects of job demands on fatigue at work and mastery partially mediated the effects of job resources on work engagement. Altogether, the results suggest that recovery merits consideration as a mediating mechanism in the JD-R model.

The stability of sense of coherence: comparing two age groups in a 5-year follow-up study

In the original theoretical formulation, Antonovsky (1987a) proposed that sense of coherence is a developmental construct that becomes stabilized at the age of 30. The present 5-year follow-up study was designed to test this hypothesis by investigating the differences in stability in sense of coherence among two age groups the younger group of which consisted of individuals under and the older group of individuals over 30 years of age. The participants were Finnish technical designers (N=352) of whom 40% (n=141) comprised the younger age group (25–29 years) and 60% (n=211) the older age group (35–40 years). The 13-item Orientation to Life Questionnaire (Antonovsky, 1987a) was used to measure sense of coherence at two time points (years 1992 and 1997). The methodology of the study was based on longitudinal factor analysis models using the LISREL framework. The results were not in line with Antonovskys theory: more stability in sense of coherence was not found in the older group of subjects compared with the younger group. In fact, age did not play any role in the stability of, level of or mean changes in sense of coherence. Thus, the findings indicate that Antonovsky’s (1987a, 1991) theory is in need of revision regarding the development and stability of sense of coherence in adulthood.

Sense of coherence and work characteristics: A cross-lagged structural equation model among managers

This study investigated the dominance of predictive relationships between Sense of Coherence (SOC) and work characteristics (organizational climate and job control) in cross-lagged longitudinal data with two measurement points and a time lag of 3 years. The sample consisted of 615 (587 men and 28 women) managers, aged between 27 and 64 years. The cross-lagged longitudinal analysis was done by the use of Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) within the framework by LISREL. The results of the chi-square difference tests indicated that the model where SOC at Time 1 predicted work characteristics at Time 2 better accounted for the data than the competitive models. However, the only significant path in addition to test–retest stabilities was the path from SOC at Time 1 to organizational climate at Time 2 indicating that high SOC predicts good organizational climate over a 3-year follow-up period. The path from SOC at Time 1 to job control at Time 2 was not significant. Thus, it seems that SOC, as a relatively stable disposition, influences the ability to mobilize and generate social resources in the workplace but not the ability to produce job control.

The structure of Antonovsky's Orientation to Life Questionnaire

The present study investigated the structure of Antonovskys (1987) short-form (13-item) Orientation to Life Questionnaire (OLQ). The OLQ was developed to measure sense of coherence, which consists of three interrelated components: meaningfulness, comprehensibility and manageability. Confirmatory factor analyses were carried out using data on three occupational groups (technical designers n = 989, teachers n = 1012, managers n = 1035). The factor analysis models were specified and compared in the study: (1) a first-order one-factor model; (2) a first-order correlated-three-factor model; and (3) a second-order model with three first-order factors. The results suggested that the first-order correlated-three-factor structure and the second-order structure fitted the data better than the one-factor structure. The second-order model in particular proved to be theoretically advantageous. It indicated that the short-form OLQ could be conceptualized as a single general expectancy factor, sense of coherence, consisting of three interrelated firstorder factors, i.e. meaningfulness, comprehensibility and manageability.