The sense of coherence scale and relationships between sense of coherence, sociodemographic variables and chronic disease

Sense of coherence (SOC) is a global orientation that represents a core concept of the salutogenic model of health. No Polish version of the SOC questionnaire currently exists that has been validated on a representative sample. The aim of this study was to validate the Polish adaptation of the SOC-13 Scale, and to determine the role of sociodemographic variables and health situation on SOC. The study was cross-sectional with a longitudinal component. The sample comprised 1053 individuals and was representative of the Polish population with respect to age and sex. Confirmatory factor analysis and measurement equivalence analysis were conducted. The total group was divided into subgroups according to sex, age, marital status, occupational status, place of residence, and chronic condition for the sake of comparison. The time stability of the measurement was established using the test-retest method. The three-factor, nine-item version of the SOC-9-PL was found to exhibit the best psychometric properties. The analyses support the metric invariance of the scale structure across sex, age, education, and marital status. The SOC-9-PL achieves full measurement invariance across employment status, place of residence, time of measurement, and the presence of chronic disease. The overall measure is reliable (α = 0.82) and demonstrates high stability over a three-month interval (r = .69, p < .001). There is a positive correlation between SOC and age (r = .30, p < .001). Men have slightly stronger SOC than women (pdifference = 0.007, Cohen’s d = 0.16), employed persons exhibited stronger SOC than unemployed persons (pdifference = 0.002, Cohen’s d = 0.42), single persons declared weaker SOC than other marital groups (pdifference < 0.001, Cohen’s d = 0.62). When controlling for the age and sex of respondents, presence of chronic disease (β = − 0.12, p < .001) and single status (β = − 0.15, p < .001) were negatively correlated with SOC. The SOC-9-PL scale is a valid and reliable method for measuring sense of coherence. It can be used in the adult population, including both healthy individuals and those with chronic illnesses, and it can be applicable regardless of the sociodemographic status. The application of calculated for sex- and age-specific sten norms can be useful in the interpretation of results.