Monitoring Young Lifestyles (MyLife): A prospective mixed-method study of youth and substance use in Norway

Summary

MyLife is a large-scale longitudinal investigation of substance use among youth in Norway aiming to advance our understanding of causes and consequences of early substance use and other addictive behaviors, as well as of the associated individual, social, and cultural contexts and processes.  We are interested in finding out who initiates substance use, who continues with and/or progresses further into problem use, and who controls/stops substance use; at what times and why; and with what consequences?  These questions represent the central theme of this study and will be investigated both quantitatively and qualitatively over time. 

To the best of our knowledge, this study is the very first longitudinal study of youth in Norway to employ developmental epidemiology perspective in combination with qualitative interviews, and to encompass a high number of meaningfully spaced (annual) assessments focusing specifically on the development of substance use behaviors over the critical adolescent years.   Future extensions and linkages to other data sources (i.e., registries) are planned.