title: Self-rated health and its relationship to health/ life problems and coping strategies in members of the professional Slovenian armed forces.
abstract: The aim of this study was to test the association between self-rated health status (i.e. psychological and interpersonal welfare, physical health, coping mechanisms) and absence from work due to illness in the Slovenian armed forces. 390 military personnel were included in the study. Two groups of soldiers, healthy (G1-H) and sick/less healthy (G2-S), were created according to the median value of their annual sick leave. A third group consisted of soldiers on a mission (G3-M). A background questionnaire (demographic data, lifestyle habits, a list of life problems and a list of health problems in the last three years), a Self-Rated Health Scale and the Folkman-Lazarus Ways of Coping Questionnaire were administered. Self-rated physical health was best in group G1-H and worst in G2-S, with differences between the groups being statistically significant. No gender differences were found either between the groups or in the whole sample. The most common coping strategies amongst all the soldiers were found to be problem solving, positive re-evaluation of the situation and self-control. The groups differed only in their use of the distancing strategy. The self-rated health of all the participants was found to be in strong negative correlation with the escape/avoidance coping strategy. In group G2-S, more soldiers assessed their health as poor; the differences between the groups were statistically significant. Strong positive correlations between self-rated health and satisfaction with interpersonal relationships were found. Self-rated health was found to be significantly associated with the quality of interpersonal relationships and the socio-economic and psycho-physical conditions of the soldiers.
authors: University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine, Ljubljana, Slovenia. polona.selic@siol.net
authors: Polona
authors: P
authors: Selić
authors: Davorina
authors: D
authors: Petek
authors: Masa
authors: M
authors: Serec
authors: Maja Rus
authors: MR
authors: Makovec
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017524:Slovenia / Q000453:epidemiology; D012919:Social Behavior; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult