The Icelandic Prevention Model Evaluation Framework and Implementation Integrity and Consistency Assessment.

The Icelandic Prevention Model (IPM) follows a systematic but flexible process of community capacity building, data collection, analysis, dissemination, and community-engaged decision-making to guide the data-informed selection, prioritization, and implementation of intervention strategies in preventing adolescent substance use. This paper describes two new evaluation tools intended to assess the: 1) integrity of IPM implementation, and 2) unique aspects of IPM implementation in different community contexts. These evaluation tools include a: 1) five-phase IPM Evaluation Framework for Assessing Value Across Communities, Cultures, and Outcomes (IPM-EF); and 2) 10-Step IPM Implementation Integrity and Consistency Assessment (IPM-IICA) that utilizes both quantitative (scored) and qualitative (narrative) data elements to characterize implementation integrity and consistency at both community coalition and school community levels.

Preliminary impact of the adoption of the Icelandic Prevention Model in Tarragona City, 2015-2019: A repeated cross-sectional study.

Background: There is a great need for effective primary prevention intervention strategies to reduce and delay onset of adolescent substance use. The Icelandic Prevention Model (IPM) showed great success in Iceland over the past twenty plus years, however, evidence for the transferability of model is still somewhat limited. Using data collected in Tarragona during regional efforts to begin adoption of the IPM in Catalonia, this study tested the transferability and stability of the core risk and protective factor assumptions of the IPM overtime and examined trends of lifetime smoking, e-cigarette-use, alcohol-use, intoxication, and cannabis-use within the same time period.

Examining the impact of a leisure time intervention on participation in organized out-of-school activities among adolescents: a quasi-experimental study in Franklin County, KY, USA.

Guided by the Icelandic Prevention Model, a community-led coalition in Franklin County, KY, aimed to subsidize costs for participation in supervised organized leisure time programs among its youth via adaptation of the Reykjavik City Leisure Card program, locally known as the 'YES Card' voucher program. This study examined whether the proportion of students participating in supervised out-of-school activities and sports was higher in the YES Card intervention group compared to a similar group of youth who did not receive the voucher across two time points. Two waves of survey data were collected in one intervention middle school and two geographically and demographically similar comparison schools in 2020 (n for intervention = 112, n for comparison = 723) and 2021 (n for intervention = 134, n for comparison = 873).

Effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescent mental health and substance use up to March, 2022, in Iceland: a repeated, cross-sectional, population-based study.

Background: Poor mental health in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic has been well documented in adolescents; however, less is known about the longer-term effect of the pandemic. We aimed to examine adolescent mental health and substance use as well as covariates associated with these outcomes 1 year or more into the pandemic.

Methods: A nationwide sample of adolescents aged 13-18 years enrolled in school in Iceland were invited to complete surveys administered during October-November or February-March, 2018, October-November, 2020, February-March or October-November, 2021, and February-March 2022.

Conducting national burden of disease studies and knowledge translation in eight small European states: challenges and opportunities.

Background: Several countries across Europe are engaging in burden of disease (BoD) studies. This article aims to understand the experiences of eight small European states in relation to their research opportunities and challenges in conducting national BoD studies and in knowledge translation of research outputs to policy-making.

Methods: Countries participating in the study were those outlined by the WHO/Europe Small Countries Initiative and members of the Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) Action CA18218 European Burden of Disease Network.

Substance Use Among Youth During the COVID-19 Pandemic: a Systematic Review.

Purpose Of Review: To review the literature on the trends in substance use among youth during the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Recent Findings: The pandemic has given rise to concerns about the mental health and social well-being of youth, including its potential to increase or exacerbate substance use behaviors. This systematic review identified and included 49 studies of use across alcohol, cannabis, tobacco, e-cigarettes/vaping, and other drugs, and unspecified substances.

A year of Covid-19: experiences and lessons learnt by small European island states-Cyprus, Iceland and Malta.

Background: COVID-19 became a global pandemic within weeks, as every country including small states and islands experienced a surge in cases. Small islands are known to face several challenges in the quest to curb the viral spread, but with the absence of land boarders and small population size, these factors should have played to their advantage to minimize the spread. The aim of this article was to compare and contrast the COVID-19 situation, restrictions, preparedness, management and the healthcare systems between the small population island states of Cyprus, Iceland and Malta.

Mental Health, Academic Engagement, and Youths' Nonmedical Use of Stimulants: A Latent Profile Analysis.

Background:: Nonmedical prescription stimulant (NPS) use is a growing problem in Europe. Poor mental health and lack of academic engagement are potent sources of risk for substance use. Studies suggest that considerable heterogeneity may characterize the risk profiles of NPS users.

Prevalence, mental health and substance use of anabolic steroid users: a population-based study on young individuals.

The use of anabolic androgen steroids to enhance performance is not a modern phenomenon. However, the majority of today's anabolic androgen steroid users are not competitive athletes, but individuals who want to look leaner and muscular. This study aimed to examine the prevalence of anabolic androgen steroid use among young individuals and assess whether their mental health, lifestyle and substance use differ from non-anabolic androgen steroid users.

The Impact of COVID-19 on Mental Health: The Role of Locus on Control and Internet Use.

The true extent of the mental health implications of the COVID-19 pandemic are unclear, but early evidence suggests poorer mental health among those exposed to the pandemic. The Internet may have differential effects, by both connecting people with resources, or reinforce the constant checking of negative information. Moreover, locus of control becomes important in an uncontrollable pandemic.

Trends in substance use and primary prevention variables among adolescents in Lithuania, 2006-19.

Background: Since the implementation of the Icelandic Model for Primary Prevention of Substance Use in Iceland (IPM), substance use has decreased steadily among 14-16-year-old adolescents and primary prevention factors have improved. Although the IPM is being implemented in several other regions around the world, information documenting its effectiveness in other country contexts is lacking. This study assessed trends in substance use and primary prevention variables in three cities in Lithuania following the implementation of the IPM.

The Impact of Sexual Abuse, Family Violence/Conflict, Spirituality, and Religion on Anger and Depressed Mood Among Adolescents.

Stressful life experiences, such as sexual abuse and family violence/conflict, relate to an increased risk of mental health problems. Religion and spirituality may prevent this negative impact, but religion and spirituality are lower among survivors of stressful life experiences. To explore this effect, we examined the relationship between childhood sexual abuse and family violence/conflict on anger and depressed mood.

The increase in symptoms of anxiety and depressed mood among Icelandic adolescents: time trend between 2006 and 2016.

Background: Both research and popular media reports suggest that adolescent mental health has been deteriorating across societies with advanced economies. This study sought to describe the trends in self-reported symptoms of depressed mood and anxiety among Icelandic adolescents.

Methods: Data for this study come from repeated, cross-sectional, population-based school surveys of 43 482 Icelandic adolescents in 9th and 10th grade, with six waves of pooled data from 2006 to 2016.

Maternal smoking during pregnancy and scholastic achievement in childhood: evidence from the LIFECOURSE cohort study.

Background: Research on the impact of maternal smoking during pregnancy (MSDP) on scholastic achievement in the offspring has shown conflicting findings. The objective of this study was to assess the impact of MSDP on scholastic achievement in a birth cohort of children in 4th, 7th and 10th grades.

Methods: We analysed data from the LIFECOURSE study, a cohort study of risk and protective factors in all children born in Reykjavik, Iceland, in the year 2000 (N = 1151, girls = 49.

Impact of a physical activity intervention on adolescents' subjective sleep quality: a pilot study.

Background: The aim of this pilot study was to examine the impact of a brief physical activity intervention on adolescents' subjective sleep quality. Cross-sectional studies indicate that physically active adolescents have better subjective sleep quality than those with more sedentary habits. However, less is known about the effectiveness of physical activity interventions in improving adolescents' subjective sleep quality.

The role of community, family, peer, and school factors in group bullying: implications for school-based intervention.

Background: Although an ecological perspective suggests the importance of multiple levels of intervention, most bullying research has emphasized individual- and school-focused strategies. This study investigated community and family factors that influence school efforts to reduce odds of group bullying behavior and victimization.

Methods: We used multilevel logistic regression to analyze data from the 2009 Youth in Iceland population school survey (N = 7084, response rate: 83.

Mode of daily caffeine consumption among adolescents and the practice of mixing alcohol with energy drinks: relationships to drunkenness.

Objective: Adolescent use of alcohol mixed with energy drinks (AmED) has recently received increased attention. Previous studies have established a strong link between AmED and drunkenness and suggest the importance of understanding associations with AmED use. In this study, we operationalized caffeine as daily consumption of coffee, tea, cola drinks, and energy drinks, and examined whether daily caffeine consumption relates to AmED use and drunkenness.

Changes in body image and dieting among 16-19-year-old Icelandic students from 2000 to 2010.

The aim of the study was to evaluate trends in body image and dieting among 16-19-year-old students in Iceland from 2000 to 2010. Data from four cross-sectional surveys conducted among Icelandic students in 26 junior colleges using four time points were compared to examine changes in body image and dieting. In total, 33,801 students with the mean age of 17.

Association between higher BMI and depressive symptoms in Icelandic adolescents: the mediational function of body image.

Background: Weight status and depressive affect in adolescents are positively related constructs, but the nature of this relationship is not well understood, especially in European populations. The objective of this study was to examine the interplay between body mass index (BMI) and depressive symptoms, while accounting for the possible mediational role of body image, in a sample of older adolescents in Iceland.

Method: We utilized data from a population-based cross-sectional sample of 11 388 junior college students (16-20-year-olds) to conduct structural equation modelling to test the relationship between BMI, body image and depressive symptoms while controlling for socioeconomic status and other background variables.

Self-generated identification codes in longitudinal prevention research with adolescents: a pilot study of matched and unmatched subjects.

Self-generated identification codes (SGICs) are an increasingly utilized methodological feature of longitudinal prevention research among adolescents. This study sought to test the differences between the matched and unmatched groups at baseline on a number of background, health, and well-being and risk behavior measures in a prevention study among 13- to 16-year-old Icelandic adolescents where a SGIC was constructed and used to link individual-level respondent data over two data collection points one year apart. We use pilot data from two Reykjavik city secondary schools collected as part of the population study Youth in Iceland in February 2010 and 2011 (N = 366, SGIC matching rate 61%).

The landscape of overweight and obesity in Icelandic adolescents: geographic variation in body-mass index between 2000 and 2009.

The prevalence of overweight and obesity has increased globally. This study examined the geographic variation in overweight and obesity trends among Icelandic adolescents in urban and rural areas. Data from two cross-sectional population-based samples of 14- and 15-year-old students attending the compulsory 9th and 10th grades of the Icelandic secondary school system in 2000 and 2009 were used to calculate body mass index (BMI).

A collaborative community approach to adolescent substance misuse in Iceland.

Substance use has become a major threat to health and human development in many European countries. In 23 out of 28 countries participating in the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD), there was a constant and substantial increase in substance use among secondary-school students between the years 1995 and 2003 (Hibell , 2003). Iceland experienced a similar upward trend in substance use (Sigfusdottir , 2008).