About the project
Mental health and wellbeing are shaped by a complex interplay of individual characteristics, social factors, and environmental conditions. The Social Processes in Wellbeing (SoWell) study represents a large-scale research effort to investigate this interplay and how it develops over time.
Approximately 16,000 individuals from the Norwegian Twin Registry will be invited to participate in the study. The project combines longitudinal assessments of psychological functioning, social factors, and environmental factors over extended time periods with intensive data collection in daily life. This integrated design facilitates the identification of how trajectories of mental health and wellbeing are shaped by social and environmental influences across different time scales. In addition, the SoWell study will address the genetic contributions to these relationships.
Aims
The SoWell study aims to generate new knowledge about how social and environmental factors relate to mental health and wellbeing over time. Specifically, the study seeks to advance understanding of:
- Patterns of stability and change in mental health and wellbeing across time
- How social factors, such as relationships and social connection, are associated with mental health and wellbeing
- How environmental characteristics are related to mental health and wellbeing
Background
The SoWell project is a collaboration between the University of Oslo and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.
Efforts to improve population mental health require a comprehensive understanding of how social and environmental factors influence mental health and wellbeing. The SoWell project examines how these factors are associated with mental health in daily life as well as across longer time spans, including months and years. The project includes two components: A comprehensive three-wave longitudinal observational study and an ecological momentary assessment (EMA) component to capture dynamics in daily life. Importantly, the project also addresses the genetic contributions to these associations, providing a more complete understanding of the mechanisms underlying individual differences in mental health and wellbeing.
