The significance of the sense of coherence for various coping resources in stress situations used by police officers in on-the-beat service.
BACKGROUND
Police officers meet many stressors as part of their occupation. The psychological resource "sense of coherence" (SOC) protects against ill-health, but its impact on coping resources for stress situations has not been studied in the population of police officers. Different approaches to investigate the significance of SOC for different outcomes have been identified in literature, leading to some difficulties in the interpretation and generalization of results. The aim was therefore to explore SOC and the coping resources, and to examine the significance of SOC for various coping resources for stress using different models in a sample of Swedish police officers providing on-the-beat service.


METHODS
One hundred and one police officers (age: mean = 33 years, SD = 8; 29 females) were included, and the Orientation to Life Questionnaire (SOC-29) and the Coping Resources Inventory (CRI) were used. The dependent variable in each regression analysis was one of the coping resources: cognitive, social, emotional, spiritual/philosophical, physical, and a global resource. Global SOC-29 and/or its components (comprehensibility, manageability, and meaningfulness) were investigated as independent variables.


RESULTS
All CRI and SOC-29 scores except for that of spiritual/philosophical resources were higher than those of reference groups. Manageability was the most important component of SOC for various coping resources in stress situations used by police officers.


CONCLUSIONS
A deeper study of manageability will give useful information, because this component of SOC is particularly significant in the variation in resources used by police officers to cope with stress. Salutogenesis, the origin of well-being, should be more in focus of future research on workplaces with a high level of occupational stress.
Department of Social and Behavioural Studies, Division of Psychology and Organizational Studies, University West, SE-461 86, Trollhättan, Sweden, anna.daderman@hv.se.
Anna M
AM
Dåderman
Daniel
D
De Colli
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000523:psychology*; D016495:Police; D060685:Sense of Coherence; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden