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In this chapter, the authors convey some of the main ways the term ‘salutogenesis’ is used today. Antonovsky introduced the term salutogenesis in his 1979 and 1987 books on the Salutogenic Model of Health, but salutogenesis subsequently has come to refer to a core concept in the model in particular; the sense of coherence. This usage has advanced to the point that some writers have coined the term ‘sense of coherence theory’. The term salutogenesis is also frequently used to refer, more generally, to an approach to health theory, research and practice emphasising resources that people may call on to improve health.

Settings are defined by the World Health Organization (1998) as “the place or social context in which people engage in daily activities in which environmental, organizational, and personal factors interact to affect health and well-being.” Such settings range from small-scale home/family to (international) organizations and large cities and thus differ in size, in their degree of formalized organization and their relationships to society. The chapters in Part V review how salutogenesis has been applied to health promotion research and practice in a broad range of settings: organizations in general, schools, higher education, workplace, military settings, neighborhood/communities, cities, and restorative environments. The following synthesis demonstrates that applying salutogenesis to various settings and linking salutogenesis with other models established in these settings has the great potential to generate ideas on how to advance the general salutogenic model.

In this chapter, the author provides the reader with a useful description of Salutogenesis meeting places. These are the Society for Theory and Research on Salutogenesis (STARS) and the Global Working Group on Salutogenesis (GWG-Sal) of the International Union for Health Promotion and Education (IUHPE). The author also provides information about the Center on Salutogenesis at the University of Zürich in Switzerland. The Center is the host organization of both meeting places. The key message of this chapter is that one’s involvement in STARS will extend one’s professional network, open new avenues for research and publishing, and help achieve a vision of “salutogenesis for thriving societies.” The reader wanting to connect more directly to a global salutogenesis network will find this chapter to be of great practical value.

Salutogenesis Theory and Methods: Developments, Innovations and Next Steps: This chapter is this handbook’s ‘grand finale’, addressing the potential of salutogenesis to nurture thriving societies. The handbook’s editors reflect on the advancement of salutogenesis concerning theory development, applying the salutogenic model in community settings and helping society tackle crises such as COVID-19.

This chapter presents models, measures, and intervention approaches that relate to the double nature of work and its salutogenic quality. Hereby, the view of Aaron Antonovsky is enhanced insofar that health-promoting, salutogenic job characteristics are not solely understood as mitigating the pathogenic effects of stressors at work but have a distinct effect on positive health outcomes. In the chapter, Antonovsky’s original model is first specified and simplified for the context of work. Next, Antonovsky’s line of thinking is related to frameworks researching job resources and demands. After a review of the prevalence of salutogenic measures in worksite health promotion, the point of making salutogenesis more visible in work-related research and practice is elaborated. This is illustrated with a practical example of a survey-feedback process promoting salutogenic work.

Organisations influence the health of society through three major paths: the health of their employees through working conditions, the health of their customers through the quality of their products or services and the population’s health at large through their socio-ecological impact. This chapter focuses on the first path of organisations’ impact on employee health through working conditions. It complements the chapter on salutogenic work by expanding the level of analysis to organisational characteristics. The chapter aims to be particularly applicable to for-profit organisations, in which it is exceptionally challenging to introduce a health agenda.

© 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd

Introduction: Honest prognostication and information for patients are important parts of end-of-life care. This study examined whether an educational intervention could increase the proportion of patients who received information about the transition to end-of-life (ITEOL care). Method: Two municipalities (in charge of nursing homes) and two hospitals were randomised to receive an interactive half-day course about ITEOL for physicians and nurses. The proportion of patients who received ITEOL was measured with data from the Swedish Register of Palliative Care (SRPC). Patients were only included if they died an expected death and maintained their ability to express their will until days or hours before their death. Four hospitals and four municipalities were assigned controls, matched by hospital size, population and proportion of patients receiving ITEOL at baseline. Results: The proportion of patients in the intervention group who received ITEOL increased from 35.1% (during a 6-month period before the intervention) to 42% (during a 6-month period after the intervention). The proportion in the control group increased from 30.4% to 33.7%. The effect of the intervention was significant (p=0.005) in a multivariable model adjusted for time, age, gender and cause of death. Conclusion: More patients at end-of-life received ITEOL after an educative half-day intervention directed to physicians and nurses.

An ongoing systematic analysis of the global evidence on the overall impact and effectiveness of a salutogenic approach to health promotion proves that people and systems that develop the ability to implement a salutogenic approch strenghening the Sense of Coherence, will create systems where people not only live longer but perceive they are in good health, enjoy a better quality of life and mental wellbeing. In addition, they can withstand stress better than the average and are inclined to more constructive health behaviours. Even if they become acutely ill or develop a chronic disease such as an NCD they will manage better than the average. Overall the approach responds positively as a system to the acation areas and policies of the Ottawa Charter. Reference: The Hitchhikers Guide to Salutogenesis, Folkhälsan Research Report 2, 2010 The IUHPE Global Working Group on Salutogenesis formed a core group of 10 research centers in December 2010. Here the Nordic Representatives covering 4 Nordic Countries will speak to the issue healthy public policy implications, mental health and quality of life, health behaviours, chronic disease (NCDs), healthy learning and empowerment, community action. Further describing how the contemporary evidence is collected, documented and analyzed. Authors: Prof. Maurice Mittelmark, HEMIL Senter, NO, Prof. Geir A. Espnes, NTNU, NO, Prof. Bjarne Bruune Jensen, STENO Center, DK, Prof. Mima Cattan, Folkhälsan, FI, Dr Monica Eriksson, University West, Sweden, Prof. Bengt Lindström, Folkhälsan, FI.