Short Project Description

Long-term pain and psychological distress in young people can negatively affect participation in education and work and have significant consequences for individuals and society. The project’s ambition is to contribute to developing more holistic knowledge about what promotes and inhibits participation in education and work in young adults with long-term pain and psychological ailments, in collaboration with these user groups. The project will conduct needs-identified research and will involve young adults with long-term pain and psychological problems, health personnel and NAV. These will participate in the planning and implementation of the project. The method is intended to contribute to increasing the utility of the research. The project is part of the bridge-building initiative at the Faculty of Health Sciences and is a UNIKOM collaboration between the NAV at Oslo municipality and OsloMet.

In the project, the following research questions will be investigated: 1) What experiences do young adults with long-term pain and psychological problems have with follow-up in NAV and/or the health system? And what promoting and inhibiting factors for participation in education and work do young adults report in meeting with NAV and/or the health system? 2) What is the course of participation in education and work among young adults with long-term pain and mental disorders who receive welfare benefits and/or treatment measures? 3) To what extent are promoting or inhibiting factors, identified by young adults with long-term pain and psychological distress, related to participation in education and work?

Planning and design of the project is based on the Brobygger model for needs-identified research. Furthermore, the project will use different methodological approaches to answer the research questions in three sub-studies. This form of bridge building will facilitate two-way knowledge transfer between academic research and society’s needs.