Unraveling the Mystery of Health: How People Manage Stress and Stay Well

Antonovsky's book challenges the health care community to reassess its approach to health. He asserts that the focus for too long has been solely on illness and the treatment of specific disease, with little or no attention directed at the factors and conditions necessary for health. The author offers a way to evaluate the psychological, social, and cultural factors that relate to health and well-being. Antonovsky presents a model that he calls the ``sense of coherence'' (SOC), suggesting that the way people make sense of the world is a major factor in their health. He provides, as an appendix, a questionnaire for assessing the SOC for individuals to evaluate and predict how well they manage stress and stay healthy. This model was presented by Antonovsky in an earlier work, but this volume provides more detail on both the theoretical and research database for the SOC. Insight is provided on how SOC affects neuroendocrine and immunological processes and thus overall health. The conceptual framework presented in this book is useful and important. The writing style, however, is often cumbersome, making for difficult reading. In addition, the author assumes readers are familiar with his earlier work, Health, Stress and Coping (CH, Jan '80); readers not acquainted with its content will find it difficult to follow the ideas being presented. In spite of these shortcomings, the book sets an important direction for thought in the evolution of health promotion strategies.