Lancet Reg Health Eur. 2026 Mar 26;65:101660. doi: 10.1016/j.lanepe.2026.101660. eCollection 2026 Jun.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Completing upper-secondary education is a key milestone with long-term implications for health and socioeconomic stability. We examined how adolescent mental well-being associated with school connectedness and prospective outcomes including school dropout and NEET (Not in Employment, Education or Training) status.
METHODS: The study included 67,684 students from the Danish National Youth Cohort 2014 (mean age: 17.8). Based on this cohort, four mental well-being groups were identified in earlier work using latent class analysis: Good (32%), Moderate (35.1%), Poor (19.5%), and Very Poor (13.5%). Using nationwide registers, we estimated associations between mental well-being groups and non-completion of any upper-secondary education within five years using logistic regression. We additionally examined one-year school dropout and NEET status at five- and ten-year follow-up. To contextualise analyses, associations between mental well-being groups and poor school connectedness were estimated using Poisson regression.
FINDINGS: Students in the Very poor mental well-being group had higher prevalences of reporting poor school connectedness. Compared to students with Good mental well-being, those with Very poor mental well-being had markedly higher odds across all prospective outcomes. For five-year non-completion, the odds ratio was 2.94 (95% CI: 2.58, 3.34). Students with Poor and Moderate mental well-being also showed elevated odds, reflecting a stepwise increase in odds across mental well-being groups.
INTERPRETATION: Adolescent mental well-being presents as a risk factor for adverse educational and occupational outcomes extending into early adulthood. These findings underscore the importance of supporting mental well-being in adolescents and prioritising timely interventions before disengagement from education and the labour market.
FUNDING: The study was funded by the Tryg Foundation. The authors are solely responsible for the content, which does not necessarily reflect the official views of the Tryg Foundation.
PMID:41953370 | PMC:PMC13053850 | DOI:10.1016/j.lanepe.2026.101660
