Sense of coherence of reindeer herders and other Samis in comparison to other Swedish citizens

Background. Samis are indigenous people in north Europe. In the territory called Sapmi (Lapland), reindeer herding is the traditional base for the Sami economy. The relation between living conditions and positive health of the Swedish Samis has been sparsely studied. As health is closely linked to s...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International Journal of Circumpolar Health
Main Authors: Abrahamsson, Agneta, Lindmark, Ulrika, Gerdner, Arne
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Mittuniversitetet, Avdelningen för socialt arbete 2013
Subjects:
General resistance resources
Health determinants
Meaning of reindeer herding
Non-Sami population
Sami life form
Sami population
Sense of coherence
Social support
Survey
Threats to reindeer herding
Public Health
Global Health
Social Medicine and Epidemiology
Folkhälsovetenskap
global hälsa
socialmedicin och epidemiologi
Circumpolar Health
International Journal of Circumpolar Health
reindeer husbandry
sami
Sapmi
Lapland
Online Access:http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:miun:diva-19915
https://doi.org/10.3402/ijch.v72i0.20633
Description
Summary:Background. Samis are indigenous people in north Europe. In the territory called Sapmi (Lapland), reindeer herding is the traditional base for the Sami economy. The relation between living conditions and positive health of the Swedish Samis has been sparsely studied. As health is closely linked to sense of coherence (SOC), an understanding of the background factors to SOC may contribute knowledge that might be useful in promoting living conditions and health. Methods. The study examines relations between the level of SOC and background factors from surveys in a Sami population (n = 613) in comparison to a non-Sami population (n = 525) in Sweden, and in comparison between 2 subsamples of Samis, that is, herders and non-herders. Results. There are more similarities than differences between the Sami and non-Sami populations. However, dividing the Sami population, reindeer herders had significantly lower SOC, and in specific the subcomponent manageability, that is, less ability to use available resources to meet different demands in life, compared to non-herders. Conclusions. In addition to age and health, predictors of SOC are related to the life form of reindeer husbandry and the belonging to the herding community.

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