  We provide a new insight into the problem of generating the hadron mass
spectrum in the framework of the covariant confined quark model. One of the
underlying principles of this model is the compositeness condition which means
that the wave function renormalization constant of the elementary hadron is
equal to zero. In particular, this equation allows to express the Yukawa
coupling of the meson fields to the constituent quarks as a function of other
model parameters. In addition to the compositeness condition we also employ a
further equation which relates the meson mass function to the Fermi coupling.
Both equations guarantee that the Yukawa-type theory is equivalent to the
Fermi-type theory thereby providing an interpretation of the meson field as the
bound state of its constituent fermions (quarks). We evaluate the
Fermi-coupling as a function of meson (pseudoscalar and vector) masses and vary
the values of the masses in such a way to obtain a smooth behavior for the
resulting curve. The mass spectrum obtained in this manner is found to be in
good agreement with the experimental data. We also compare the behavior of our
Fermi-coupling with the strong QCD coupling alpha_s calculated in an
QCD-inspired approach.
