Norce Norwegian Research Centre AS

This project, called Memory for Music, focuses on the increasing number of people worldwide living with dementia, especially Alzheimer's disease (AD). AD typically starts with memory problems and eventually affects daily activities. Active music interventions, especially singing, have shown positive effects on mood, behavior, and quality of life for people with dementia, but their impact on cognition is not well understood. The project aims to address this gap by studying the effects of learning new songs on cognitive, behavioral, and brain functioning.
The study will involve home-dwelling adults aged 65 or older with AD from Argentina, Austria, and Norway. Participants will undergo 5 months of intensive musical training (twice a week) and 5 months of minimal training (once a month) in a random order, with a 2-month break in between. The interventions include learning new songs with a personal music teacher. General cognition will be measured using the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale - Cognitive (ADAS-cog), and memory for music will be assessed through various methods, including behavioral tasks and brain responses (EEG). Mood will also be evaluated in each session.
The goal is to include 113 participants to ensure reliable detection of meaningful effects. The study will explore how mood and memory for music contribute to changes in cognitive abilities, and whether these effects vary based on factors such as sex, age, AD stage, or previous musical training and general education. The project emphasizes collaboration between researchers, service providers, and users to ensure the study's relevance and applicability.

A significant proportion of people who are exposed to traumatic events suffer from post-traumatic sequelae, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Indicated preventive interventions soon after trauma could be appropriate. Yet, there is limited evidence for the efficacy of such interventions. Moreover, no evidence-based preventive interventions are readily available for victims in the aftermath of crises and disasters in Norway. Condensed Internet-delivered Prolonged Exposure (CIPE) is a preventive intervention designed for victims with symptoms of PTSD (PTSS) approximately one month after a traumatic event. The treatment is an internet-delivered, therapist assisted intervention, based on principles from Prolonged Exposure. CIPE has proven to be feasible, safe, and effective in previous studies. This study aims to test the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of CIPE in the context of psychosocial crisis services in Norwegian municipalities.
Hypotheses Effectiveness H1 Participants receiving CIPE + treatment as usual (TAU) will have significantly less PTSS than participants receiving TAU at 2.5-, 6-, and 12- months after the traumatic incident.
H2 Significantly fewer participants receiving CIPE+TAU will fulfill the criteria for PTSD than participants receiving TAU, at 6- and 12-months post trauma.
H3 Participants receiving CIPE+TAU will have significantly less symptoms of depression and insomnia than participants receiving TAU at 2.5-, 6-, and 12- months after the traumatic incident.
H4 Participants in the CIPE+TAU-condition will report significantly higher treatment satisfaction at post-treatment, compared to those in the TAU-condition.
H5 Participants with traumatic loss receiving CIPE+TAU will have significantly less symptoms of prolonged grief than such participants receiving TAU 12 months after the loss.
Cost-effectiveness H6 Fewer participants in the CIPE+TAU-condition will be referred to second-tier specialty mental health services, and more will achieve improved quality of life within the first year after the traumatic incident, compared to participants in the TAU-condition.
H7 The CIPE+TAU implementation is more cost-effective compared to the TAU in the short run and may even dominate TAU in the long run (i.e., more effective and less costly).

With an overall aim to ensure a safe and sound kindergarten environment for all Norwegian children in accordance with the Kindergarten Act §§41-43, the objectives of the current project are:
To evaluate the effectiveness of Be-Prox Norway to prevent and handle negative behavior and bullying among peers in Norwegian kindergartens.
To examine implementation factors that promote and inhibit the effectiveness of Be-Prox Norway in Norwegian kindergartens.
To describe the cost-effectiveness of the Be-Prox Norway intervention in Norwegian kindergartens.
To generate knowledge on how the Be-Prox Norway intervention can be aligned and implemented in Norwegian kindergartens.