| Summary: | The main aim of this study was to examine the number of risk factors and their relation to academic achievement outcomes in a cohort of Icelandic youth. Poor academic achievement can have negative implications on the lives of children, and can continue into adulthood. In this study, the following risk factors were measured; maternal smoking during pregnancy, exercise habits, maltreatment, family size (>3 children per family), depressed mood, and being born to a young mother. Data was gathered from multiple sources. Participants consisted of 1151 children born in Reykjavík, Iceland. OLS regression and one-way ANOVA showed that exposure to a greater number of risk factors was a predictor of lower grades in both mathematics and Icelandic in 4th and 7th grade. Furthermore, a Latent Class Analysis revealed two classes of participants, a Distressed class and a Non-Distressed class. An individual in the Distressed class had a 50% chance of scoring one standard deviation below the mean on the standardized test for mathematics in 7th grade. The findings of this study suggest that interventions should target children who are exposed to multiple risk factors, and that preventative steps should be taken to reduce the number of individuals exposed to multiple risk factors in their youth. Meginmarkmið rannsóknarinnar var að kanna fjölda áhættuþátta frá fæðingu fram á unglingsár og tengsl þeirra við námsárangur ungmenna. Rannsóknir hafa sýnt fjölmarga áhættuþætti sem geta haft áhrif á námsárangur hjá börnum, þar má nefna reykingar mæðra á meðgöngu, lítil hreyfing hjá börnum, vanræksla, fjölskyldustærð (>3 börn), vanlíðan barna og ungur aldur móður. Í þessari rannsókn var fylgt eftir 1151 barni sem var fætt í Reykjavík árið 2000, en stuðst var við gögn frá Þróunarsviði heilsugæslunnar, Barnavernd Reykjavíkur, Námsmatsstofnun og Landsspítala Háskólasjúkrahúsi. Niðurstöður aðhvarfsgreiningar og einhliða dreifigreiningar sýndu að fjöldi áhættuþátta hjá hverju barni spáði fyrir lægri einkunn í íslensku og stærðfræði í 4. og ...
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