Sense of coherence and work characteristics: A cross‐lagged structural equation model among managers

This study investigated the dominance of predictive relationships between Sense of Coherence (SOC) and work characteristics (organizational climate and job control) in cross‐lagged longitudinal data with two measurement points and a time lag of 3 years. The sample consisted of 615 (587 men and 28 women) managers, aged between 27 and 64 years. The cross‐lagged longitudinal analysis was done by the use of Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) within the framework by LISREL. The results of the chi‐square difference tests indicated that the model where SOC at Time 1 predicted work characteristics at Time 2 better accounted for the data than the competitive models. However, the only significant path in addition to test‐retest stabilities was the path from SOC at Time 1 to organizational climate at Time 2 indicating that high SOC predicts good organizational climate over a 3‐year follow‐up period. The path from SOC at Time 1 to job control at Time 2 was not significant. Thus, it seems that SOC, as a relatively stable disposition, influences the ability to mobilize and generate social resources in the workplace but not the ability to produce job control.