Optimization and Testing Effectiveness of a Collaborative Intervention for School Attendance Problems in Norwegian Municipalities

In this study we will investigate the effects of an intervention called Back2School, revised and adapted for Norwegian conditions on school attendance. A total of 240 participants will be recruited. All participants who have been enrolled will receive the intervention. Half of the participants will receive the intervention without delay (the experiment group), and the other half will receive it following a 13-week period (the control group). Following consent, screening for eligibility and randomization, the intervention will start with an assessment related to the individual participant and condition at the participants' school. Based on this a shared understanding and an intervention plan is developed. Over a 13-week period the youth, the family and the school, work together guided by the municipal team to increase attendance and solve problems related to this. Assessments will be carried out after the intervention and 6 months later.

Study Overview

• Status: Not yet recruiting
• Conditions: School Attendance Problems
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Back2School

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 240
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Jo M Ingul, phd; Phone Number: +4792869163; Email: jo.m.ingul@ntnu.no
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Kristin Ytreland, phd; Email: kristin.ytreland@ntnu.no

Study Locations

• Norway
  • Bergen, Norway
    • NORCE, RKBU Vest
    • Contact: Kristin G Askeland, phd; Phone Number: +47 56 10 72 05; Email: kras@norceresearch.no
    • Contact: Marit H Larsen, phd; Email: mala@norceresearch.no
  • Oslo, Norway
    • Pilar, Regionsenter for barn og unges psykiske helse
    • Contact: Simon P Neumer, phd; Phone Number: +4795820508; Email: simon-peter.neumer@r-bup.no
    • Contact: Carina Lisøy, phd; Email: carina.lisoy@r-bup.no
  • Tromsø, Norway
    • UIT, RKBU Nord
    • Contact: Frode Adolfsen, phd; Phone Number: +4791126323; Email: frode.adolfsen@ntnu.no
    • Contact: Therese B Halvorsen; Email: therese.halvorsen@uit.no
  • Trondheim, Norway
    • Norwegian University of Scinece and Technology
    • Contact: Jo M Ingul, phd; Phone Number: +4792869163; Email: jo.m.ingul@ntnu.no
    • Contact: Elisabeth Valmyr Bania, phd; Email: elisabeth.bania@ntnu.no

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Participants must be between the ages of 9 and 15 at the time of enrollment.
2. Participants must have less than 80% attendance for the last 12 weeks of school at the time of screening.
3. At least one parent has to talk and understand Norwegian.
4. At least one parent has to be motivated to participate.
5. The school must agree to participate in the intervention

Exclusion Criteria:

1 The participant has a known diagnosis of autism-spectrum disorder, psychosis, and/or eating disorder.

2. Participant needs acute psychiatric intervention.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Prevention
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Crossover Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Direct intervention; Participants randomized to this intervention will receive the 13 week intervention Back2School starting immediately after randomization.	Behavioral: Back2School; The revised Back2S school manual consists of an initial assessment, a case formulation conference, 16 sessions and 3 meetings with different participants (parents, youth, school personnel) over 13 weeks. There is a booster session 12 weeks after the final session and one 24 weeks after the final session.
Other: Delayed intervention/ Wait list control; Participants randomized to delayed intervention will ha to wait for 13-15 weeks following randomization before the intervention is started. During the waiting phase they can receive treatment as usual	Behavioral: Back2School; The revised Back2S school manual consists of an initial assessment, a case formulation conference, 16 sessions and 3 meetings with different participants (parents, youth, school personnel) over 13 weeks. There is a booster session 12 weeks after the final session and one 24 weeks after the final session.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
School attendance	School attendance measured on a daily basis by teacher.	Direct: Avg at Baseline, 2 weeks at end (13 weeks from baseline), 2 weeks at 6 months (37 w from baseline) Delayed: Avg at baseline, 2 weeks before start (13 w from baseline) 2 weeks at end (28 w from baseline), 2 weeks at 6 months (54 w from baseline)
General functioning	Impact on daily life as measured by the SDQ impact scale	Direct start group: Will be measured at Baseline (T1), Week 15 from baseline (T2), Week 37 from baseline (T3) Delayed access group: Baseline (T1), Week 15 from Baseline (T1a), Week 29 from baseline (T2), Week 54 from baseline (T3)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in Quality of life	Measures perceived quality of life as reported by parents and child using Kidscreen 10	Direct start group: Will be measured at Baseline (T1), Week 15 from baseline (T2), Week 37 from baseline (T3) Delayed access group: Baseline (T1), Week 15 from Baseline (T1a), Week 29 from baseline (T2), Week 54 from baseline (T3)
Change in symptoms of anxiety	Measures change in symptoms of anxiety as measured by the SCAS reported by parents and child	Direct start group: Will be measured at Baseline (T1), Week 15 from baseline (T2), Week 37 from baseline (T3) Delayed access group: Baseline (T1), Week 15 from Baseline (T1a), Week 29 from baseline (T2), Week 54 from baseline (T3)
Change in symptoms of Depression	Change in symptoms of depression reported by child and parents using the SMFQ	Direct start group: Will be measured at Baseline (T1), Week 15 from baseline (T2), Week 37 from baseline (T3) Delayed access group: Baseline (T1), Week 15 from Baseline (T1a), Week 29 from baseline (T2), Week 54 from baseline (T3)

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Norwegian University of Science and Technology
• Collaborators: University of Bergen; University of Tromso; The Research Council of Norway; University of Aarhus; NORCE Norwegian Research Centre AS; University of Stavanger; Regionsenter for barn og unges psykiske helse; Regionalt kunnskapssenter for barn og unge - Nord
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Jo Magne Ingul, phd, Norwegian University of Science and Technology

Publications and helpful links

Helpful Links

• Official webpage of the study

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Estimated): March 23, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2028
• Study Completion (Estimated): March 1, 2029

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 26, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 6, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): March 10, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 10, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 6, 2026
• Last Verified: March 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Randomized controlled trial; Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; Norway; Children and adolescents; School attendance problems; Back2School
• Other Study ID Numbers: 353222; 907476 (Other Identifier: REK MIDT-NORGE); 658505 (Other Identifier: SIKT)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO
• IPD Plan Description: Not allowed by Norwegian law and therefore not allowed by our ethical board

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No