Ung Arena: Et bærekraftig kommunalt tilbud for å redusere psykiske og sosiale problemer blant unge?
The increase in mental and social problems among young people is creating significant social costs and pressure on municipalities, which must prevent and treat more without increased resources. Ung Arena is a free, low-threshold service that provides young people with support and help, and the project will evaluate how well the service works.
About the project
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Project period: 31.03.2025 - 29.03.2029 (Active)
- Coordinating Institution: Norwegian Institute of Public Health
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Project Manager:
- Idunn Brekke, Child Health and Development
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Project Participants:
- Geir Scott Brunborg, Child Health and Development
- Silje Kvam Bårdstu, Child Health and Development
- Robert Smith, Health Promotion
- Andreea Ioana Alecu, Consumption Research Norway
- Janikke Solstad Vedeler, Norwegian Social Research
- Kristine Von Simson, Norwegian Social Research
- Arnfinn Helleve, Public Health and Prevention
Summary
Mental and social issues among young people, such as school dropout and early disability pensions, have risen significantly in recent years, resulting in substantial costs to society. This development creates challenges for municipalities, which are facing higher demands to prevent and treat mild mental health issues, without receiving additional resources for this. To address these challenges, it is important that municipalities promptly establish user-friendly and effective health services that can help young people cope with mental and social difficulties. Young Arena is a free, low-threshold service already available in several municipalities in Norway. Here, young people receive help, support, and guidance to manage mental and social problems. This project aims to evaluate how Young Arena functions and whether it is beneficial for young people struggling with mental and social issues. The evaluation will be conducted in collaboration with researchers, municipalities, Young Arena centers, and the young people themselves. The goal is to gather solid knowledge that can help improve and further develop such low-threshold services and provide municipalities with better tools to address mental health among young people. The evaluation consists of several parts: a process evaluation to assess how the service operates (sub-study 1), an effect evaluation to measure the effects of the Young Arena intervention (sub-study 2), a cost-benefit analysis (sub-study 3), and a guide with recommendations on how Young Arena can be further developed and expanded to more municipalities (sub-study 4). The project will use both quantitative data (from surveys and registers) and qualitative methods (such as interviews) to gain a comprehensive understanding of how the Young Arena service operates.