Many young people do not complete high school (approximately 30%), and the lack of education has unfortunate consequences, making it more challenging to enter the job market.
The purpose of this study is to examine health-related factors in 10th grade that are significant for completing high school and later employment attachment. Not all young people with known risk factors drop out of high school and the job market. We will study individual and contextual factors relevant to inclusion in education and employment. Furthermore, we will investigate how stability and change in mental health and health behavior from 15 to 18 years are associated with later employment attachment. We will particularly focus on socioeconomic status, ethnicity, and gender.
Research Method
This is an epidemiological questionnaire study linked to various national registers. Entire cohorts of 10th graders (15/16 years old) in six different counties were invited to participate in the Norwegian Institute of Public Health's youth surveys (from 1999-2004). A total of 88% of those invited participated (approximately 16,000). One of the 10th-grade cohorts was followed up with a new questionnaire survey when they were 18/19 years old. These data are linked to information from, among other sources, the National Education Database, the Employment Register, and information about various benefits from the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration (NAV) until 2010.
Results Data analysis is ongoing and will be published in national and international forums and scientific journals.
Practical Significance and Research Implications
In addition to uncovering correlations and identifying particularly vulnerable groups with specific needs, the study has the potential to reveal mechanisms that may be important for understanding why some individuals "fall through the cracks" while others "succeed against all odds."
Funding
This project is one of three sub-projects supported by the Norwegian Research Council (VAM). The Regional Centre for Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Eastern and Southern Norway (RBUP øst og sør), also supports this sub-project. "Out of work," consisting of three sub-projects, is a collaboration between the Institute of Clinical Medicine (IKM) at the University of Oslo (UiO), RBUP East and South, the Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies (NKVTS), and the Institute of Health and Society (IHS) at UiO.
