Norwegian version

Youth Research

This research group is a department of Norwegian Social Research – NOVA and its main goal is to enhance the development of youth research in Norway.

This group is multi-disciplinary, comprising mostly sociologists, anthropologists and psychologists. Empirical research on adolescents is based on local and regional qualitative and quantitative studies, as well as national representative surveys. Main research topics are youth culture and leisure activities, school adjustment, transitions from school to employment, alcohol and drug use, delinquency and conduct problems, intergenerational relations and issues concerning ethnicity and the multi-cultural society.

Head of research group

Loading ...

Featured research

The centre of Oslo seen from the Ekeberg hillside with Bjørvika and Barcode in the foreground.
Oslo, the divided city

A deep socioeconomic divide splits Oslo from east to west. It will continue to deepen unless it is more widely acknowledged and addressed.

Young girl sitting on a couch looking down on a tablet on her lap.
Screen quality matters more than screen time

How much time children and teenagers spend looking at screens is on many parents’ minds. Yet researchers insist it is the quality of that time that should concern us most.

Young woman playing with a soccerball
Football for everyone—or mainly for boys?

The opportunities offered to boys and girls who play football in Norway are different, according to new research from OsloMet. ‘This can have consequences that go far beyond elite sports,’ says Marlene Persson.

A lonely man wearing a hoodie and a baseball cap, seen from behind, as he gazes towards the evening sky.
Finding community in extremism

Sometimes, youth feel like strangers in their own countries. In the face of real and perceived injustices, some find community in extremism.

An adolescent girl busy using her phone.
Norwegian youth have handled the pandemic well

In spite of the challenges that have accompanied the COVID-19 pandemic, most Norwegian teenagers report high levels of life satisfaction.

Young people drinking at a party.
Sexual assault in social settings can take many different forms

A new study provides insight into the different ways that sexual assault can occur among teenagers and young adults.

A man is sitting alone on a swing looking at the sunset.
Researchers have been following 40-somethings since their teens: Who gets left behind?

Researchers from Norwegian Social Research (NOVA) at OsloMet have been following the same people for more than 28 years. They now seek to investigate why some people have experienced marginalisation as adults.

Six teenagers relaxing together, and using their mobile phones.
Researchers seek to better understand the lives of young people in Norway

Using a variety of methods, OsloMet researchers are gaining new insights into young people's opinions, struggles and aspirations.