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The aim of this article is to review the psychometric properties of the psychological tests that are being used in the Nordic countries during pregnancy and the child’s first two years of life. A systematic literature search was performed for 33 identified tests routinely used in health care, using specific review databases as well as PsycInfo, Embase and Medline. The trained authors conducted an overall assessment of quality for each test which was then verified by the editors. A total of 12% of the tests were rated at Level 1 ‘Low level of quality’, 61% at Level 2 ‘Some evidence of Quality’, 15% at level 3 ‘Good level of Quality’ and 12% at Level 4 ‘High level of quality’. This indicates that the evidence for the psychometric properties is insufficient for many tests used in the Nordic countries for this purpose.

Background: The aim of the present study was to examine the factor structure and reliability of a six-item scale of rule-breaking behaviour, and to test for measurement invariance across gender, age, survey year and geographical location. Methods: Data were from three yearly cross-sectional and population-based collections of the Ungdata surveys (2017 to 2019) including a total of 297,102 Norwegian adolescents aged approximately 13 to 19 years. Measurements included respondent’s rule-breaking behaviour, time, gender, age and geographical location. Results: Confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated that a one-factor solution of the rule-breaking behaviour scale had good fit to data (comparative fit index 0.98; Tucker–Lewis index 0.96; root mean square error of approximation 0.049 (95% confidence interval 0.048, 0.050)), with factor loadings ranging from 0.60 to 0.81 for all items (mean factor loading 0.72). Similar results were found across survey years for both genders. Several multiple group confirmatory factor analyses showed indications of measurement invariance for the scale across gender, age groups, geographical locations and survey years. The ordinal alpha and omega coefficients for internal consistency of the scale were both 0.86. Conclusions: The six-item scale for self-reported rule-breaking behaviour demonstrated good psychometric properties and appears to constitute a reliable measure of adolescent rule-breaking behaviour for use in population-based surveys in a Norwegian setting.

Purpose Evidence is emerging on the importance of psychological readiness to return to sport after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. The ACL-Return to Sport after Injury scale (ACL-RSI) is developed to assess this. The aim of the current study was to translate ACL-RSI into Norwegian and examine the measurement properties of the Norwegian version (ACL-RSI-No). Methods ACL-RSI was translated according to international guidelines. A cohort of 197 ACL-reconstructed patients completed ACL-RSI-No and related questionnaires nine months post-surgery. One hundred and forty-six patients completed hop tests and 142 patients completed strength tests. Face and structural validity (confirmative factor analysis and explorative analyses), internal consistency [Cronbach’s alpha (α)], test–retest reliability [Intraclass Correlation Coefficients (ICC)], measurement error [Standard error of measurement (SEM) and smallest detectable change at individual (SDCind) and group level (SDCgroup)] and construct validity (hypotheses testing; independent t tests, Pearson’s r) were examined. Results ACL-RSI-No had good face validity. Factor analyses suggested that the use of a sum score is reasonable. Internal consistency and test–retest reliability were good (α 0.95, ICC 0.94 (95% CI 0.84–0.97) and measurement error low (SEM 5.7). SDCind was 15.8 points and SDCgroup was 2.0. Six of seven hypotheses were confirmed. Conclusions ACL-RSI-No displayed good measurement properties. Factor analyses suggested one underlying explanatory factor for “psychological readiness”—supporting the use of a single sum score. ACL-RSI-No can be used in the evaluation of psychological readiness to return to sport after ACL injury. Level of evidence III.

Memorializes Dan Olweus (1931-2020). Olewus was a founder of the study of bullying. At the University of Bergen, starting in 1970, he served as Professor of Psychology (until 1995) and Research Professor (1996 to 2010), then moved on to the Regional Centre for Child and Youth Mental Health and Child Welfare until 2016. He was affiliated with the Department for Health Promotion and Development at the University of Bergen from 2019 until his death. In 1970, Olweus conducted what is widely viewed as the first scientific study on bullying, which involved 1,000 boys in Stockholm, Sweden. Findings were published in his 1978 book, Aggression in Schools: Bullies and Whipping Boys. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

BACKGROUND Adolescents exposed to negative online events are at high risk to develop mental health problems. Little is known about what is effective for treatment in this group. NettOpp is a new mobile app for adolescents who have been exposed to cyberbullying or negative online experiences in Norway. OBJECTIVE The aim of this paper is to provide a description of the content of the intervention and about a randomized controlled trial that will be conducted to examine the effectiveness of NettOpp. This protocol is written in accordance with the Spirit 2013 Checklist. METHODS An effectiveness study with a follow-up examination after 3 months will be conducted to evaluate the mobile app. Adolescents will be recruited through schools and will be randomly assigned to the intervention (NettOpp) group and a waiting-list control group. The adolescents (aged 11 to 16 years) will respond to self-report questionnaires on the internet. Primary outcomes will be changes in mental health assessed with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, the WHO-Five Well-being Index, and the Child and Adolescent Trauma Screen. RESULTS Recruitment will start in January 2022. The results from this study will be available in 2023. CONCLUSIONS There are few published evaluation studies on app-based interventions. This project and its publications will contribute new knowledge to the field. CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04176666; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04176666 INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT PRR1-10.2196/31789

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP) in reducing specific forms of bullying—verbal bullying, physical bullying, and indirect/relational bullying, as well as cyberbullying and bullying using words or gestures with a sexual meaning. This large-scale longitudinal study, which involved more than 30,000 students in grades 3–11 from 95 schools in central and western Pennsylvania over the course of 3 years, employed a quasi-experimental extended age-cohort design to examine self-reports of being bullied, as well as bullying others. Findings revealed that the OBPP was successful in reducing all forms of being bullied and bullying others. Analyses by grade groupings (grades 3–5, 6–8, and 9–11) revealed that, with only a few exceptions, there were significant program effects for all forms of bullying for all grade groupings. For most analyses, program effects were stronger the longer the program was in place. Most analyses indicated similar and substantial effects for both boys and girls, but a number of program by gender interactions were observed. Program effects for Black and White students were similar for most forms of being bullied and bullying others. Although Hispanic students showed results that paralleled the development for Black and White students for particular grade groups and variables, they were overall somewhat weaker. The study provided strong support for the effectiveness of the OBPP among students in elementary, middle, and early high school grades. Program effects were broad, substantial, and largely consistent, covering all forms of bullying—verbal, physical, indirect, bullying through sexual words and gestures, and, with somewhat weaker effects, cyberbullying—both with regard to being bullied and bullying others. Strengths and limitations of the study, as well as future research directions, are discussed.

Students report that teachers often do not intervene against homophobic language. Among 283 teachers in 16 Norwegian schools, several factors distinguished which teachers reported more consistently intervening and more frequently discussing homophobic language with students. Women, but not men, who more strongly believed that homophobic language should not be allowed and who believed it was harmful reported more consistent intervention. Women and men who reported greater self-efficacy to intervene reported more consistent intervention. In a second model, teachers who reported receiving education on homophobic bullying and who reported greater self-efficacy to intervene more frequently discussed homophobic language with students.

The report provides an overview and short systematic review of the psychosocial interventions and psychological tests used in the Nordic countries during the first 1000 days of a child’s life, i.e. ...

Consequences of nondomestic violence are known to be multifaceted with high rates of emotional and psychological problems in addition to physical injuries, and victims report many trauma related symptoms. This study explore if perceived social support (PSS) (Social Provisions Scale [SPS]) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms (Impact of Event Scale [IES-22]) are interrelated among adult victims at four assessment points up until eight years after the exposure to physical assault; soon after the event (T1), three months after T1 (T2), one year after T1 (T3), and eight years after T1 (T4). One hundred and forty-three subjects participated at T1, 94 at T2, 73 at T3, and 47 accepted a follow-up at T4. At T1, 138 of 143 completed the questionnaires within 16 weeks after the incident. PTSD symptoms were highly correlated across time ( p < .001); PSS were significantly correlated only between T1 and T2 ( p < .001), T1 and T3 ( p < .05), and between T2 and T3 ( p < .05). Cross-lagged analyses showed an inverse relationship between prior PSS and later PTSD symptoms across all time points ( ps < .05); not proved between prior PTSD symptoms and later PSS ( ps > .1). PSS at T1 was an independent predictor of PSS one year and eight years after the incident. We conclude that higher perception of social support protects against the development of PTSD symptoms; diminished perception of social support increases the risk of developing PTSD symptoms. These findings suggest that PSS after experiencing a violent assault should be considered as an important factor in natural recovery in the long run, as well as essential alongside psychiatric treatment. Establishing psychosocial interventions for victims of physical violence in the acute phase may prevent prolonged trauma reactions.

Aims: The structure of adolescents’ families has become more complex over the last decades in several western countries. In parallel, health complaints among adolescents appear to have risen in the Nordic countries. This study aimed to examine the association between family structure and health complaints among Norwegian adolescents while capturing biological, half-, and stepsiblings (sibship-type) in the families. Methods: Data stem from the youth@hordaland study, an epidemiological study of adolescents aged 16–19 years ( N = 10,257; participation rate = 53%) conducted in 2012. This study is based on a subsample of 8808 adolescents who lived with parent(s). The adolescents provided detailed information on sociodemographics, family structure, sibship-type, and common health complaints among youth (headache, dizziness, and abdominal, neck, back, and shoulder pain). Results: Adolescents in nuclear families and joint physical custody (JPC) reported significantly lower levels of health complaints compared to peers in single- or stepparent families. Independent of family structure, biological siblings were associated with lower levels of health complaints, while stepsiblings were associated with higher levels of health complaints, but only among girls. These findings were robust to adjustments of sociodemographic variables. Conclusions: Health complaints are frequent but unequally distributed across family structures. Adolescents in nuclear families and JPC report lower levels of health complaints compared to peers in single- or stepparent families. Considering siblings appears to be relevant, as biological- and stepsiblings were related to adolescents’ symptoms, independent of family structure. In combination, knowledge about family structure and sibship-type may aid the identification of adolescents at risk of experiencing health complaints.

The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to evaluate a large-scale implementation of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program with children and youth in grades 3–11 in the U.S. Two major sets of analyses are presented, one following 210 schools over two years (Study 1; n = 70,998 at baseline) and the other following a subsample of 95 schools over three years (Study 2; n = 31,675 at baseline). Schools were located in 49 counties in central and western Pennsylvania. The Mplus 7.0 program was used to analyze the data which had a multilevel structure, with students nested in schools and program effects based on school-aggregated outcome variables. For almost all grades, there were clear reductions in the two key dimensions, being bullied and bullying other students. Average Absolute Change amounted to approximately 3%, implying that almost 2000 students had escaped being bullied in the two-year study. School-level Cohen's d's were large or fairly large. The longitudinal analyses documented increases in students' expressions of empathy with bullied peers, marked decreases in their willingness to join in bullying, and perceptions that their primary teacher had increased his or her efforts to address bullying. Overall, effects were stronger the longer the program had been in place. The analyses provided strong support for the effectiveness of the OBPP with U.S. students in elementary, middle, and early high school grades in Pennsylvania schools. Future research is warranted to assess program effectiveness in different racial/ethnic and community settings and to examine the relation between fidelity of implementation and outcomes.

The aim of this study was to examine the association between family structure and adolecent mental health, after the considerable increase in divorced parents choosing joint physical custody (JPC) ...

Background Adolescents exposed to negative online events are at high risk to develop mental health problems. Little is known about what is effective for treatment in this group. NettOpp is a new mobile app for adolescents who have been exposed to cyberbullying or negative online experiences in Norway. Objective The aim of this paper is to provide a description of the content of the intervention and about a randomized controlled trial that will be conducted to examine the effectiveness of NettOpp. This protocol is written in accordance with the Spirit 2013 Checklist. Methods An effectiveness study with a follow-up examination after 3 months will be conducted to evaluate the mobile app. Adolescents will be recruited through schools and will be randomly assigned to the intervention (NettOpp) group and a waiting-list control group. The adolescents (aged 11 to 16 years) will respond to self-report questionnaires on the internet. Primary outcomes will be changes in mental health assessed with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, the WHO-Five Well-being Index, and the Child and Adolescent Trauma Screen. Results Recruitment will start in January 2022. The results from this study will be available in 2023. Conclusions There are few published evaluation studies on app-based interventions. This project and its publications will contribute new knowledge to the field. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04176666; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04176666 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) PRR1-10.2196/31789

Background In DSM 5, three disorders are related to trauma and/or maltreatment: Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) and Disinhibited Social Engagement Disorder (DSED) but how these disorders relate to each other and to traumatic events is unknown. Objective We examined 1. Prevalence of Potentially Traumatic Events (PTEs) and poly-victimization for youths in foster care. 2. Associations between single/multiple PTEs and PTSD, DSED, and the two symptom-clusters that constitute RAD: Failure to seek/accept comfort (RAD A), and Low social-emotional responsiveness/ emotion dysregulation (RAD B). Participants, setting and methods Foster youth 11–17 years (N = 303) in Norway completed The Child and Adolescent Trauma Screen. Foster parents completed the RAD and DSED Assessment interview. Results Foster youth reported experiencing, on average, 3.44 PTEs each (range 0–15, SD 3.33), and 52.9 % reported PTSD symptoms at or above clinical cut off. The PTE sum score was associated with the latent factors PTSD (r = .66, p

BACKGROUND The 7-item Game Addiction Scale (GAS) has been validated under standard confirmatory factor analysis and exhibits good psychometric properties. Whether this scale satisfies the necessary conditions for consideration by item response theory (IRT) modeling remains unknown. However, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5) recently proposed criteria, in its section 3, to define internet gaming disorder (IGD) to promote research on this possible condition. OBJECTIVE The objective of our study was to (1) analyze GAS in the context of IRT (graded-response) modeling; (2) investigate differential item functioning (DIF), a feature of IRT modeling, in 2 subsamples; and (3) contribute to the ongoing (IGD) debate related to the validity of the DSM-5 criteria using GAS items as a proxy. METHODS We assessed 2 large representative samples of Swiss men (3320 French-speaking and 2670 German-speaking) with GAS. RESULTS All items comprised high discrimination parameters. GAS items such as relapse, conflict, withdrawal, and problems (loss of interests) were endorsed more frequently in more severe IGD stages, whereas items related to tolerance, salience (preoccupation), and mood modification (escape) were endorsed more widely among participants (including in less severe IGD stages). Several DIF effects were found but were classified as negligible. CONCLUSIONS The results of the analyses partly support the relevance of using IRT to further establish the psychometric properties of the GAS items. This study contributes to testing the validity of the IGD criteria, although cautious generalization of our findings is required with GAS being only a proxy of the IGD criteria.

Individuals from intact and nonintact families were compared regarding their health-related behavior and physical health problems in a prospective study during a 17-year period throughout adolescence and into young adulthood. A total of 983 respondents were included in the study gathering data at 9 different times from the age of 13 until 30 years of age. Significant differences were observed for a number of health-related behaviors, such as smoking, alcohol consumption, nutrition habits, and physical activity, as well as for self-reported health and subjective health complaints, all being less favorable among those who had grown up in nonintact families. The differences were similar across all data collection times for all but 1 outcome, indicating that the effect ts of family structure were stable throughout adolescence and early adulthood. This could have valuable implications for timing or duration of health promotion efforts.

In the present article, we used IRT (graded response) modeling as a useful technology for a detailed and refined study of the psychometric properties of the various items of the Olweus Bullying scale and the scale itself. The sample consisted of a very large number of Norwegian 4th-10th grade students (n = 48 926). The IRT analyses revealed that the scale was essentially unidimensional and had excellent reliability in the upper ranges of the latent bullying tendency trait, as intended and desired. Gender DIF effects were identified with regard to girls' use of indirect bullying by social exclusion and boys' use of physical bullying by hitting and kicking but these effects were small and worked in opposite directions, having negligible effects at the scale level. Also scale scores adjusted for DIF effects differed very little from non-adjusted scores. In conclusion, the empirical data were well characterized by the chosen IRT model and the Olweus Bullying scale was considered well suited for the conduct of fair and reliable comparisons involving different gender-age groups. Information Aggr. Behav. 41:1-13, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

There are differences in the prevalence rates of child maltreatment between countries, as well as variation in how these rates change over time. This review examined the prevalence of different forms of intrafamilial child maltreatment in the Nordic countries and possible changes in the prevalence rates over the past two decades. We conducted a systematic search of the databases PsycInfo, ISI Web of Science and PubMed and of self-report studies investigating the prevalence of one or several forms of child maltreatment in non-clinical samples published from 1990 to the present. In addition, we searched for unpublished reports. A total of 24 Nordic studies were included. The findings suggest a prevalence of child sexual abuse by a parent in the range of 0.2–1.2 per cent, a prevalence of severe physical abuse in the range of three to nine per cent and a prevalence of witnessing domestic violence in the range of seven to 12, 5 per cent in the Nordic countries. Markedly more girls than boys were exposed to sexual abuse. The results indicate a decline in the prevalence of sexual abuse by a relative and of parental physical abuse over the past 20 years, but no corresponding changes in the prevalence of witnessing domestic violence. There is a lack of studies on the prevalence of neglect and emotional maltreatment. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. ‘A total of 24 Nordic studies were included’ Key Practitioner Messages: Knowledge of intrafamilial child abuse and witnessing domestic violence in the Nordic countries is expanded. Prevalence studies not published in the international scientific literature are included. Time trends in prevalence rates are shown. Differences between Nordic prevalence rates and the rates found in high-income countries as a whole are explored and discussed. Attention is drawn to the influence of contextual factors on the prevalence of child maltreatment. ‘Attention is drawn to the influence of contextual factors on the prevalence of child maltreatment.’

With a view to developing a brief screening instrument for autism symptoms in a general population of adolescents, seven items from the Asperger syndrome (and high-functioning autism) diagnostic interview were adapted for use as self-report in an online questionnaire for youths aged 16–19 years (N = 10,220). The selected items target lack of social understanding (4 items) and rigid and repetitive behavior and interests (RRBI; 3 items). Factor analyses were performed, and the seven items were also validated against self-reported ASD diagnosis. Best statistical model fit was found for a bifactor model with one general factor and two domain specific factors tied to social difficulties and RRBI. Both the general and the domain specific factors were associated with self-reported ASD diagnoses. The scale (referred to as the Autism Symptom SElf-ReporT for Adolescents and Adults – ASSERT) had good screening properties with a receiver operating curve-area under the curve (ROC-AUC) of 0.87 and a diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) of 15.8. Applying a modified scoring of the scale further improved the screening properties leading to a ROC-AUC of 0.89 and a DOR of 24.9. The ASSERT holds promise as a brief self-report screen for autism symptoms in adolescents, and further studies should explore its usefulness for adults. publishedVersion

The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire--Short Form (CTQ-SF) is widely used to measure childhood abuse of all types. In the present study, we examined the psychometric properties of the Norwegian version of the instrument. The participants constituted four subsamples (n = 517): substance abusers (n = 126), psychiatric patients (n = 210), prisoners (n = 109) and adolescents in out-of-home placements (n = 72). Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a reasonable fit of the data to the original five-factor structure of the CTQ-SF. Measurement invariance was found across gender and the four subsamples. It was concluded that the Norwegian version of the CTQ-SF has acceptable psychometric properties, with good reliability and satisfactory accuracy, to assess different dimensions of childhood trauma.

Objective: To examine whether a bifactor model with a general ADHD factor and domain specific factors of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity was supported in a large general population sample of children. We also explored the utility of forming subscales based on the domain-specific factors. Methods: Child mental health questionnaires were completed by both teachers and parents of all children in grades 2–4 in Bergen, Norway. Confirmatory factor analysis was performed on the ADHD items of a modified version of the Swanson, Nolan and Pelham Questionnaire–IV (SNAP-IV) for 6,237 children. Results: The bifactor model showed very good model fit with a strong general ADHD factor and specific factors for impulsivity and inattention. The subfactors, especially hyperactivity, generated from the SNAP-IV ADHD items conveyed little unique variance in the model. Conclusions: The findings in this general population sample with a strong general ADHD factor in the bifactor model supports the view on ADHD as a unitary concept with specific domain factors for inattention and impulsivity, but not for hyperactivity. The bifactor model questions the utility of constructing ADHD subscales by the use of a simple sum score when using the SNAP-IV.

The aim of the study was twofold: (1) to examine how psychosocial support provided by teachers and classmates related to students' self-regulated learning as expressed through self-reported academic initiative, and (2) whether academic competence and school satisfaction mediated these relationships. The data were from a nationally representative sample of 13- and 15-year-old students (n = 3,125) from the Norwegian part of the World Health Organization's survey of Health Behaviour in School-aged Children. Multiple-group structural equation modeling analysis indicated that teacher support and classmate support related to academic initiative. A multi-mediating path approach revealed that school satisfaction partly mediated both these relationships. Perceived academic competence partly mediated the relationships between teacher support and academic initiative, and between school satisfaction and academic initiative.

A 14-item human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome knowledge scale was used among school students in 80 schools in 3 sites in Sub-Saharan Africa (Cape Town and Mankweng, South Africa, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania). For each item, an incorrect or don't know response was coded as 0 and correct response as 1. Exploratory factor analyses based on polychoric correlations showed two separate factors for all sites. Two-parameter item response theory (IRT) analysis (bifactorial multiple indicators multiple causes confirmatory factor analysis models) consistently showed a general first factor and a second 'method' factor. One single global latent variable seemed to sufficiently well capture most of the systematic variation in knowledge. Some items did not discriminate well between levels of the underlying knowledge latent variable and information values were highest for low levels of knowledge. The scale might be improved by adding items, in particular items that are more difficult to answer. Some differential item functioning effects related to site and socioeconomic status were identified. Scores on the latent knowledge variable were particularly low among females in Dar es Salaam and Mankweng, and were negatively associated with socioeconomic status. This study illustrates advantages of using IRT analysis instead of more conventional approaches to examining psychometric properties of knowledge scales.

It is well established that adolescents living in father custody are more likely to be involved in antisocial behavior and substance use, as compared to adolescents living in mother custody. This study assessed whether these differences also pertain to a wider spectrum of health-related outcomes. A second aim was to investigate the role of a stepparent on adolescents' health-related adjustment. A total of 6,447 Norwegian adolescents between ages 11 and 16 participated in the study. The findings revealed that the differences between adolescents in father versus mother custody might be somewhat more comprehensive than previous studies have observed, indicating increased risks for adjustment problems among adolescents living with a single father on various health-related outcomes. Generally, a stepmother does not seem to compensate for the risks of adjustment problems, but might have a positive influence on certain health-related behaviors.

STUDY DESIGN Cross-sectional and longitudinal designs within a prospective cohort study. OBJECTIVE Translation of Hannover Functional Ability Questionnaire (FFbH-R) into Norwegian and examination of its factor structure, internal consistency, reproducibility, construct validity, and responsiveness in patients with long-lasting back pain. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Several condition-specific instruments have been developed to evaluate functional status in low back pain, but FFbH-R was the only instrument found to solely measure perceived capability of performing daily activities. METHODS Recommended guidelines for translation of questionnaires and quality criteria for validation were followed. A total of 111 patients (aged 18-65 years) with long-lasting back pain were consecutively recruited from an outpatient spine clinic. Two additional samples of patients with long-lasting back pain were added into the exploratory factor analysis, giving a total number of 224 patients. Predefined hypotheses regarding construct and longitudinal validity (responsiveness) were examined. RESULTS Factor analysis indicated that 2 items should be removed, resulting in a 3-factor solution as the best fit. The factors were related to flexibility, dynamic strength, and posture endurance. Satisfactory internal consistency and reproducibility were demonstrated for the total and subscales of the Norwegian version of FFbH-R. Most of the predefined hypothesis regarding construct and longitudinal validity were confirmed, and discriminate ability was shown. Minor floor and ceiling effects were demonstrated. CONCLUSION Psychometric properties of the Norwegian version of FFbH-R were satisfactory in patients with long-lasting back pain, but the dynamic strength and posture endurance subscales might be complemented with additional items.

This study focuses on how specific parent–child relationship variables may function as mediators of the association between two postdivorce family structures and antisocial behavior and substance use. Five parent–child relationship variables (mother/father–child conflict, parental monitoring, and mother/father–child closeness) were tested as potential mediators of the relationship between living in a single-mother or single-father household and the outcome variables in a sample of 4,117 students with modal ages of 11 to 15 years. The applied multimediating path approach proved to be a useful method for identification of the relative importance of the included mediators. As hypothesized, there was a clear tendency for mother–child conflict and parental monitoring to be the most potent mediators between residing in a divorced single-mother household and the adolescents' antisocial behavior and substance use. In the single-father household, on the other hand, only parental monitoring was a clear mediator.

Background: Long-term sick leave and withdrawal from working life is a concern in western countries. In Norway, comprehensive inpatient work rehabilitation may be offered to sick listed individuals at risk of long-term absence from work. Knowledge about prognostic factors for work outcomes after long-term sick leave and work rehabilitation is still limited. The aim of this study was to test a mediation model for various hypothesized biopsychosocial predictors of continued sick leave after inpatient work rehabilitation. Methods: One thousand one hundred fifty-five participants on long-term sick leave from eight different work rehabilitation clinics answered comprehensive questionnaires at arrival to the clinic, and were followed with official register data on sickness benefits for 3 years. Structural equation models were conducted, with days on sickness benefits after work rehabilitation as the outcome. Results: Fear avoidance beliefs for work mediated the relation between both musculoskeletal complaints and education on days on sickness benefits after work rehabilitation. The relation between musculoskeletal complaints and fear avoidance beliefs for work was furthermore fully mediated by poor physical function. Previous sick leave had a strong independent effect on continued sick leave after work rehabilitation. Fear avoidance beliefs for work did not mediate the small effect of pseudoneurological complaints on continued sick leave. Poor coping/interaction ability was neither related to continued sick leave nor fear avoidance beliefs for work. Conclusions: The mediation model was partly supported by the data, and provides some possible new insight into how fear avoidance beliefs for work and functional ability may intervene with subjective health complaints and days on sickness benefits after work rehabilitation. publishedVersion

The study examines how adolescents’ perceptions of exposure to smoker role models relate to their intentions to smoke, both directly, and indirectly through attitudes, norms, and perceived behavioural control. The data is based on a national representative sample of 15-year-olds (n=1670) in Norway. Path analysis indicates that perceptions of model smoking are related to adolescents’ intention to smoke, and that this relationship is partly mediated by attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control regarding smoking. Programs designed for intervention should thus consider the complex relationship between model smoking and the theory of planned behaviour concepts and their effect on intention to smoke among adolescents. In addition, future intervention should take into account the current smoking status of adolescents, given the group differences found in the study.

Using a theoretically guided contrast analysis approach (see Furr & Rosenthal, 2003; Rosnow & Rosenthal, 2002) and data from a relatively large community sample (2550 students in grades 7-9), different sets of hypotheses dealing with adolescents' adjustment in four post-divorce family structures were tested. Most of the hypotheses matched with the data. Adolescents from single mother and stepfather families were at a moderately increased risk of displaying various adjustment problems as compared with adolescents from non-divorced two-parent families. The risk level of youth from single father and joint physical custody families each differed in their own ways from the risks of adolescents from the two first-mentioned family structures. Adolescents from single father families reported an alarmingly high amount of antisocial behavior and substance use, while their counterparts from families with joint physical custody were at no higher risk of displaying adjustment problems than their peers from no...

Mental health problems are common in foster-children, and tools to measure the mental health of these children are needed. One candidate instrument is the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), a measure of child psychological adjustment that is increasingly being employed by Child Protection services. The aim of the current study was to examine the structural validity of the foster parent completed SDQ in a sample of 237 school aged foster children. Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated an excellent fit of the foster parent completed SDQ data to a five-factor model (CFI = 0.96, RMSEA = 0.05, 90% CI [0.04, 0.06]), thus confirming the structural validity of the five-factor model for the parent-version of the SDQ in Norwegian foster children. Measurement invariance analyses indicated that boys had lower thresholds for fighting with or bullying other children than girls. Girls were on their side more likely to be rated as less popular than boys with a similar level of peer problems.

Study Design. Cross-sectional design. Objective. To explore (1) the factor structure of the Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ), (2) whether there is a dominant factor, and (3) whether the potential factors are unique predictors of other aspects related to back pain. Summary of Background Data. The RMDQ is one of the most recommended back-specific questionnaires assessing disability. The RMDQ is scored as a unidimensional scale summarizing answers to all 24 questions (Yes/No) regarding daily life functioning. However, there are indications that the scale is multidimensional. Methods. Patients (n = 457; age, 18–60 yr) with 8 to 12 weeks of back pain filled in questionnaires assessing subjective health complaints, emotional distress, instrumental and emotion-focused coping, and fear voidance behavior at baseline. A total of 371 patients (81.7%) filled in the RMDQ. Exploratory factor analysis was used to examine the factor structure of RMDQ items. Multiple regression analyses were used to assess whether the derived factors predicted relevant problems in back pain differently. Results. Exploratory factor analysis showed indices of model fit for a 3-factor solution after removing 2 items because of low prevalence (19 and 24). Two items were removed because of cross-loadings and low loadings (2 and 22). No support for a dominant factor was found as the 3 factors were only moderately correlated (r = 0.34–0.40), and the ratio between the first and second eigenvalue was 2.6, not supporting essential unidimensionality. “Symptoms” were the factor that most strongly predicted subjective health complaints, whereas “avoidance of activity and participation” predicted fear avoidance behavior, instrumental and emotional coping. “Limitation in daily activities” did not predict any of these variables. Conclusion. The main findings of our study are that the RMDQ consists of 3 independent factors, and not 1 dominant factor as suggested previously. We think the time is now ripe to start treating and scoring the RMDQ as a multidimensional scale. Conclusion. Level of Evidence: N/A

Background Former studies suggest that prior exposure to adverse experiences such as violence or sexual abuse increases vulnerability to posttraumatic stress reactions in victims of subsequent trauma. However, little is known about how such a history affects responses to terror in the general adolescent population. Objective To explore the role of prior exposure to adverse experiences as risk factors for posttraumatic stress reactions to the Oslo Terror events. Method We used data from 10,220 high school students in a large cross-sectional survey of adolescents in Norway that took place seven months after the Oslo Terror events. Prior exposure assessed was: direct exposure to violence, witnessing of violence, and unwanted sexual acts. We explored how these prior adversities interact with well-established risk factors such as proximity to the events, perceived life threat during the terror events, and gender. Results All types of prior exposure as well as the other risk factors were associated with terror-related posttraumatic stress reactions. The effects of prior adversities were, although small, independent of adolescents’ proximity to the terror events. Among prior adversities, only the effect of direct exposure to violence was moderated by perceived life threat. Exposure to prior adversities increased the risk of posttraumatic stress reactions equally for both genders, but proximity to the terror events and perceived life threat increased the risk more in females. Conclusions Terror events can have a more destabilizing impact on victims of prior adversities, independent of their level of exposure. The findings may be relevant to mental health workers and others providing post-trauma health care.

To examine whether a bifactor model with a general ADHD factor and domain specific factors of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity was supported in a large general population sample of children. We also explored the utility of forming subscales based on the domain-specific factors.Child mental health questionnaires were completed by both teachers and parents of all children in grades 2-4 in Bergen, Norway. Confirmatory factor analysis was performed on the ADHD items of a modified version of the Swanson, Nolan and Pelham Questionnaire-IV (SNAP-IV) for 6,237 children.The bifactor model showed very good model fit with a strong general ADHD factor and specific factors for impulsivity and inattention. The subfactors, especially hyperactivity, generated from the SNAP-IV ADHD items conveyed little unique variance in the model.The findings in this general population sample with a strong general ADHD factor in the bifactor model supports the view on ADHD as a unitary concept with specific domain factors for inattention and impulsivity, but not for hyperactivity. The bifactor model questions the utility of constructing ADHD subscales by the use of a simple sum score when using the SNAP-IV.

In the present article, we used IRT (graded response) modeling as a useful technology for a detailed and refined study of the psychometric properties of the various items of the Olweus Bullying scale and the scale itself. The sample consisted of a very large number of Norwegian 4th-10th grade students (n = 48 926). The IRT analyses revealed that the scale was essentially unidimensional and had excellent reliability in the upper ranges of the latent bullying tendency trait, as intended and desired. Gender DIF effects were identified with regard to girls' use of indirect bullying by social exclusion and boys' use of physical bullying by hitting and kicking but these effects were small and worked in opposite directions, having negligible effects at the scale level. Also scale scores adjusted for DIF effects differed very little from non-adjusted scores. In conclusion, the empirical data were well characterized by the chosen IRT model and the Olweus Bullying scale was considered well suited for the conduct of fair and reliable comparisons involving different gender-age groups. Information Aggr. Behav. 41:1-13, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.