Beiträge zur Gesundheitspsychologie - Pädagogische Hochschule ...

Salutogenesis and aging: The sense of coherence
as a mediator of the relationship between resistance
resource and subjective health
Ulrich Wiesmann, Gabriele Niehörster & Hans-Joachim Hannich
Universität Greifswald, Institut für Medizinische Psychologie
wiesmann@uni-greifswald.de
Research question: The salutogenic model focuses on people’s resources and
capacities to create and preserve health, which can be regarded as a crucial
developmental task in old age. Its core concept is the sense of coherence
(SOC) – a global orientation of the world as consistent, meaningful and manageable
– which determines an individual’s health level. Over the life-span, the
SOC is shaped by generalized resistance resources (GRRs) – culturally bound
internal and external forces which create reliable life experiences. Main objectives
are to test a) the presumed GRRs-SOC-relationship and b) the status of
the SOC as a mediator variable in an age-heterogenous sample of elderly persons.
Method. 387 seniors (26.6 % men) volunteered. We recruited most participants
from community senior organizations, a minority lived in a nursing home
(22.2 %). Mean age was M = 73.8 years (SD = 7.58). During a period of four
weeks, data were collected by using a questionnaire which assessed psychological
health, physical health and symptom reporting, the SOC, and a spectrum
of 19 bio-psycho-social resistance resources.
Results: Overall, GRRs, SOC and health measures co-varied significantly.
A multiple regression analysis revealed that the SOC is substantially strengthened
by psychological factors: an optimistic life orientation, high self-esteem,
low depressive mood, high self-efficacy, and high expected social support.
Stepwise hierarchical regression analyses and subsequent Sobel tests revealed
that the SOC mediated resistance resource effects on psychological health and
symptom reporting, but not on physical health.
Conclusion: The data pattern confirms basic assumptions of the salutogenic
model for successful psychological aging, but not for biological aging, as
perceived by elderly persons. With respect to gerontological practice and intervention,
the SOC is an important estimate of idiographic strengths and weaknesses
in bio-psycho-social health matters.
Keywords:
Salutogenesis, Sense of Coherence, Elderly Persons
141