Sense of Coherence and Past and/or Present Mental Health Problems Among Conscripts at Military Call-up in Northern...

Sense of coherence (SOC) refers to the psychosocial aspects and origins of health. Sense of coherence is related to physical and psychological health and quality of life. Military studies on SOC are commonly related to military deployment or operations, military training, and military fitness. Sense of coherence is assessed using a self-report scale. The total score of the scale indicates the level of SOC. Psychometric research studies over 2 past decades, however, suggest that the SOC scale is a multidimensional measure, and the latent factors should be considered as separate dimensions of SOC. Thus far, there are no previous factorial structure studies of the SOC scale in military contexts or in military populations. The dimensions of SOC have not been investigated in relation to mental health and subjective well-being of soldiers, military personnel, or military recruits/conscripts.

This study examined the structure of the self-report SOC scale among 2614 military conscripts at military call-up (before obligatory military service) in Northern Finland. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to test 4 different structure models based on previous studies of the SOC scale (1-, 2-, or 3-factor models). The dimensions of SOC were investigated in relation to conscripts' self-reported past and/or present mental health problems. Demographic variables were explored. Nonparametric tests for group and pairwise analyses were used.

The 11-item 2-factor model fitted the data best. The 2-factor structure represented the cognitive behavioral (comprehensibility and manageability) and motivational (meaningfulness) dimensions of SOC. The motivational dimension was higher among conscripts who reported past but no present mental health problems as compared to conscripts who reported past and present mental health problems. A similar difference was not found in the cognitive behavioral dimension. Both cognitive behavioral and motivational dimensions of SOC were higher among conscripts who reported not having past or present mental health problems.

SOC among conscripts is a 2-dimensional model. The experience of recovery from past mental health problems is related to a stronger motivational dimension (meaningfulness towards life), which shows upon obligatory military service and training. Sense of coherence motivational aspect may be useful when training recruits. Demographic variables, such as economic situation, family structure, and parents' employment, should be considered when assessing past and/or present mental health problems and SOC.