Positive Health Development Research Articles

How important is the coach-created motivational climate on player longevity?

Coaches are considered the architects of sustained participation and performance in sport, often responsible for implementing the structure and content of training and competition over short- and long-term periods. Further, coaches can also influence the design and nature of social interactions and experiences. Appleton et al. (2016) refers to such coaching environments, created intentionally or unintentionally, as ‘coach-created motivational climates,’ given their impact on player motivation (or lack of). This article initially describes the research that supports empowering coach-created motivational climates, an evidence-based approach to developing and sustaining player motivation. An empowering climate is characterised by coach behaviours of high task involvement, autonomy and social support and low ego control. The article then highlights how tennis coaches can implement and review empowering coaching principles, promoting positive health development and player longevity.

Sense of coherence, off-job crafting, and mental well-being: A path of positive health development.

Our study examines the core concept of salutogenesis-sense of coherence (SOC)-in relation to off-job crafting (OJC) and mental well-being (MWB). The original salutogenic model of health mainly addresses the protective function of SOC against adversity. In our study, we focus on the recently proposed path of positive health development that captures how SOC can contribute to positive health and thriving. We present and test our theoretical assumptions about one such path, examining OJC as a possible mechanism how SOC translates into MWB. We tested our proposed model using cross-lagged panel model with three waves of panel data from Swiss and German employees (N = 2217). We compared our model to alternative nested models and conducted indirect effect analysis to test longitudinal mediation. Our hypothesized model fitted the data well and we found support for our main hypothesis that OJC partially mediates the relationship between SOC and MWB. Further, we identified positive reciprocal relationships between SOC and MWB, as well as between OJC and MWB. Overall, our study provides evidence that OJC is one mechanism underlying the recently postulated path of positive health development in the salutogenic model. For health promotion, this implies that promoting SOC and OJC may help to strengthen individual well-being and lead to positive feedback loops that foster personal development and thriving.

Re-orienting healthcare for healthy living communities: A qualitative exploration of nursing students utilising the salutogenic theory for community health practice

BackgroundSalutogenesis is a resource-oriented approach that focuses on health creation. With the shift in focus from healthcare to health, there is a need to develop salutogenic inquiry and capacity of future nurses to promote good health and well-being in the community. ObjectiveThis study explored nursing students' perspectives on utilising the salutogenic theory in the community for health promotion, including the scope, perceived benefits, and challenges of theory application. DesignA qualitative study using framework analysis. SettingA tertiary institution in Singapore. ParticipantsNursing students who were taught the salutogenic theory for ‘Healthy Community Living’ module. MethodsData were gathered from four focus group discussions (n = 18) and 32 students' written assignments. They were analysed based on five components of knowledge framework. ResultsFour themes were identified: re-orienting healthcare for healthy living communities; ambivalent learning experiences; attracting early adopters of salutogenic paradigm; and practices for positive health development in complex systems: future directions. Findings reflected the value, versatility, and usefulness of introducing the salutogenic paradigm into the curriculum of healthcare education. Practical know-hows of applying the theory in community practice and development of health intervention were elicited. ConclusionMuch work is needed to future-proof the next generation of nurses in embracing and unifying the concept of salutogenic science into the existing pathogenic-driven care model. The real challenge would be the continual support of nursing education and health system to provide salutogenic care in the community.

Rocks, Dandelions or Steel Springs: Understanding Resilience from a Public Health Perspective.

The multifaceted concept of resilience is widely used to describe individual or societal abilities to withstand and adjust to external pressures. In relation to health, resilience can help us to understand a positive health development despite adverse circumstances. The authors of this article aimed to disentangle this complex concept by elaborating on three metaphors commonly used to describe resilience. Similarities and differences between resilience as a rock, a dandelion, and a steel spring are discussed. The metaphors partly overlap but still provide slightly different perspectives on the development and manifestation of resilience. With reference to longitudinal studies of long-term health development, the article also elaborates on how resilience relates to temporal dimensions commonly used in epidemiological studies: age, cohort, and period. Moreover, the interaction between resilience at individual, organizational, and societal levels is discussed. In conclusion, it is argued that public health sciences have great potential to further a theoretical discussion that improves our understanding of resilience and promotes the integration of individual- and community-level perspectives on resilience.

'A synergy model of health': an integration of salutogenesis and the health assets model.

This article proposes to advance the connections between salutogenic theory and assets models for health improvement. There is a need to integrate their use in public health and health promotion so that their respective potentials can be fully developed. This requires their synergies to be made more explicit so that a more coherent approach can be taken to their utilization. A mechanism is therefore needed that helps to raise awareness of them and their value as a resource together. Bronfenbrenner's bioecological theory provides one framework that can support better integration of salutogenesis with the applied nature of assets-based models. This paper proposes a new 'synergy model for health' that integrates key concepts associated with salutogenic theory-generalized and specific resistance resources (GRRs/SRRs) and generalized and specific resistance deficits and the sense of coherence (SOC). In doing so, it highlights those GRRs and SRRs which are assets that, either individually or collectively, help to develop a stronger SOC. Higher levels of SOC can then support the transformations of potential resources into available assets (that people can understand, manage and make sense of), capable of producing positive health development. The proposed 'Synergy model of health' aims to contribute to a deeper theoretical understanding of health and development through the integration of the key elements of both salutogenesis and assets models. This can facilitate a better contextualization of the ideas into public health policy and practice by making the salutogenic theory more action-oriented and the assets model more theoretical.

Humanitarian competencies of a doctor (cardiologist)

The article reveals the features of working with the patient as a social and psychological subject, who, in addition to somatic pathology, has an experience of the disease situation. Psychosocial risk factors for cardiovascular (and more generally non-infectious) pathology, as well as social well-being as a component of positive health, are considered as elements of a doctor-patient relationship. Work with a person requires from a doctor competency that differs from working with pathology at a biological level. Perhaps, the time has come to single out “biomedical doctors” and “medical doctors” in clinical medicine, of which the first ones are not required humanitarian competencies. Since non-infectious pathology largely includes psychosomatic features, and mental processes are filled with an experience of social reality, the clinician must have skills of human sciences to work with them. This is especially important in view of the physician’s power as an ambassador of medicine and health. The following competencies are discussed: internal work skills, situational search and interpretation, communicative and ethical competence, development of positive health.

Long Term Care in Japan and Sweden: A Comparison of Target Population, Needs and Services Provided from 2000-2010

This study aims to show how provision of long term care services has been affected by changes in population, needs of long term care by age-group and gender and provided services by level of need in Japan and Sweden 2000-2010. Data in the Japanese case were taken from the NUJLSOA-study and from registrations in the Japanese Long Term Care Insurance- system from nine municipalities. Swedish data were taken from the nationally representative surveys of living conditions (SSLC) and from surveys relating provision to needs in eight municipalities. In both countries there has been a positive health development among the old citizens. The proportion receiving home-related long term care services in Japan increased by more than 50% during the first fiveyear period. In Sweden there was a much slower increase of long term care provisions. The 2005 Japanese long term care reform seems to have dampened provision increase, but it was still much more rapid in the period 2005-2010 than in Sweden.

Mortality of Lithuanian Population Over 2 Decades of Independence: Critical Points and Contribution of Major Causes of Death

Neuromuscular transmission, muscle electrical activity and muscle mechanical properties have been studied in mice after the intraperitoneal transference of sera from myasthenic patients. Measurements of mepp's amplitude appear to be a suitable method for myasthenia gravis diagnosis since a high percentage of the sera from these patients caused a decrease in mepp's amplitude. The increase of the premenstrum weakness in myasthenic patients did not appear to be associated with greater fall of mepp's amplitude, since serum obtained in the premenstruum and far from it produced similar results. Myasthenic serum did not modify the electrical properties of innervated muscle sarcolemma. The resting membrane potential and the action potential parameters remained unchanged. However, tetrodotoxin resistant-action potentials of denervated muscles was reduced by myasthenic serum, possibly in association with receptor endocytosis process induced by the immunoglobulin. Muscle mechanical properties did not show alterations, even in the presence of positive titer of anti-striated muscle antibody.

Women’s education levels and its impact on their attitudes towards children’s health development

Relations between socio‐economic differences and health have previously been well documented, but women’s education level and relative attitudes towards children’s health development has been seldom found in studies. This paper examines the relation between women’s education level and their attitudes in understanding kindergarten children’s health and its positive development in practice. Kindergartens in Norway offer preschool children of ages one to six years not only care, but also an educational environment that benefits each child. Mothers of children in kindergarten and kindergarten employees were asked to fill out a questionnaire. Twelve kindergartens were included in this research, totalling 310 adults. Overall 196 mothers and 114 kindergarten employees answered questions about their attitudes concerning children’s health. Results indicated that highly educated mothers seem to lay more emphasis on different aspects of positive health development in children than mothers with a lower‐education level. However, kindergarten employees’ responses were unaffected by education level. Instead, there seemed to be a more homogeneous understanding of the factors promoting positive health for children. Results are discussed in terms of the importance of adults’ understanding, knowledge and attitudes towards health‐related issues and their impacts on kindergarten children’s positive health development.

Promoting mental health - Evidence of the Salutogenic Framework for a positive health development

Social trends point to a major upset of the traditional social structures such as the rupture of local and intimate networks because of migration into urban areas, changed function and structure of family networks and changes in the patterns of working life. At the same time there are concerns regarding a decreasing mental health. All this makes it difficult to find and run a coherent life. However, there are theories and frameworks contributing to stress research. One of them is the salutogenic theory developed by Aaron Antonovsky, a positive concept exploring the origin of health (salutogenesis) not disease (pathogenesis). Stress has generally been seen as a negative event that increased the risk of people “breaking down”. In contrast, Antonovsky stated that chaos and stress are part of life and natural conditions. The fundamental concepts of Salutogenesis are Generalized Resistance Resources (GRRs) and Sense of Coherence (SOC). GRRs help the person to construct coherent life experiences. Even more important than the resources themselves is the ability to use them, the sense of coherence (SOC).The presentation reports findings from an ongoing extensive worldwide systematic review of the salutogenic research, based on about 500 scientific articles. The findings show the SOC to be strongly related to perceived good health, especially mental health. SOC seems to have a main, moderating or mediating role in explaining health. SOC is able to reduce stress. SOC predicts good health and QoL. The salutogenic framework could guide public health, particularly mental health promotion, in a new direction.

Beliefs about health and diabetes in men of different ethnic origin

This paper reports the findings of a study exploring the health and illness beliefs of men with diabetes, who were from different cultural backgrounds and living in Sweden. No studies have been reported that have focused on the beliefs about health and illness in men with diabetes mellitus of different ethnic origin. Beliefs may affect self-care and care-seeking behaviour. An explorative study design and purposive sampling procedure was used. Focus-group interviews were held with 35 men with diabetes and aged between 39 and 78 years. Fourteen participants were born in Arabic countries, 10 in former Yugoslavia and 11 in Sweden. Important factors for health were the ability to be occupied/employed and economically independent and, especially among Arabs and former Yugoslavians, sexual functioning. Swedes focused on heredity, lifestyle and management of diabetes, while non-Swedes claimed the influence of supernatural factors and emotional stress related to the role of being an immigrant and migratory experiences as factors related to development of diabetes and having a negative influence on health. Swedes and Arabs described health as "freedom from disease" in contrast to many former Yugoslavians who described health as "wealth and the most important thing in life". Knowledge about diabetes was limited among the men studied, but Arabs showed an active information-seeking behaviour compared with Swedes and former Yugoslavians. Non-Swedish respondents, particularly Arabs, had sought help from health care professionals to a greater extent than Swedes, who were more likely to use self-care measures. Being occupied/employed and having knowledge about the body and management of diabetes are important for positive health development. There are dissimilarities in beliefs about health and diabetes that influence self-care behaviour and health care seeking. Men's cultural backgrounds and spiritual beliefs need to be considered in diabetes care.

Whither care of older persons in Sweden?—a prospective analysis based upon simulation model calculations, 2000–2030

The increasing number of older persons to be expected in the coming decades raises serious questions concerning the resources that will be demanded for provision of long-term care of the frail elderly. Clearly there is a need for increased resources. However, simplistic calculations based upon the assumption that future needs of care will be proportional to the number of old persons per age group seem to lead to substantially exaggerated results by failing to take into account the positive health development of the older persons. In fact a simple model earlier co-developed by the author showed that the expected increase in the period 2000–2030 was reduced from 60% to around 20%, assuming that prevailing health trends should continue.In an effort to corroborate these results and make possible further analysis of different factors pertaining to the estimation of future needs of publicly financed long-term care of frail older persons, a new model has been developed. The model also contains a retrospective part described in another paper. Data for the model are derived from different sources—longitudinal studies, local surveys of recipients of care, etc. Four different scenarios are explored. The model calculations show that the results are highly sensitive to the assumptions you make concerning the health development of older persons. In the most pessimistic scenario D the projected cost increase in fixed prices during the period amounts to 69%—in the most optimistic scenario 0 the cost increase stays at 25%. This shows the great importance of policy measures directed at improving the health of the elderly—involving among others conditions that stimulate to increased physical and mental activity and also different medical interventions.

A model for encouraging positive health development with older people: the Community Lifestyle Programme

A model for encouraging positive health development with older people: the Community Lifestyle Programme