title: Individual, social-environmental, and physical-environmental factors that underlie sense of coherence in Dutch adults.
abstract: Antonovsky's salutogenesis is a theoretical perspective on health development that explores physical, mental, and social factors that contribute to a 'healthy life orientation' and also a theoretical approach to behavior change. Previous studies applying salutogenesis show that a high sense of coherence (SOC), a composite measure from salutogenesis indicating one's capacity to cope with stress, is associated with a healthy life orientation and lifestyle behaviors, including healthy eating patterns. However, limited evidence exists on the factors that underlie SOC, which could be used to strengthen this capacity as a means to enable healthier eating. Dutch adults ( N = 781) participated in a cross-sectional study examining the relationship between SOC and a set of individual, social-environmental, and physical-environmental factors. The main findings indicate that high SOC was associated with a diverse set of factors including lower doctor-oriented health locus of control; higher satisfaction with weight; higher perceived levels of neighborhood collective efficacy; higher situational self-efficacy for healthy eating; lower social discouragement for healthy eating; and higher neighborhood affordability, accessibility and availability of healthy foods. These findings can inform the design of nutrition interventions that target these factors that strengthen SOC and provide the building blocks for a healthier life orientation.
authors.affiliation: 1. Department of Social Sciences, Health and Society Group, Wageningen University and Research Centre, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Emily
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Swan
authors.affiliation: 1. Department of Social Sciences, Health and Society Group, Wageningen University and Research Centre, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bouwman
authors.affiliation: 2. Department of Social Sciences, Strategic Communication Group, Wageningen University and Research Centre, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Gerrit Jan
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Hiddink
authors.affiliation: 2. Department of Social Sciences, Strategic Communication Group, Wageningen University and Research Centre, the Netherlands.|3. ASCor (Amsterdam School for Communication Research), University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Noelle
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Aarts
authors.affiliation: 1. Department of Social Sciences, Health and Society Group, Wageningen University and Research Centre, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koelen
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion; D000070497:Healthy Lifestyle; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009426:Netherlands; D009752:Nutritional Status; D020377:Self Efficacy; D060685:Sense of Coherence; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
keywords: health promotion; nutrition; quantitative; salutogenesis