Lena Hansen Malnes

Lena Hansen Malnes serves as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health and Nursing Science at the University of Agder, where she actively contributes to teaching, research, and academic leadership. Her work bridges clinical nursing practice with public health research, focusing on physical activity interventions across different population groups.

Her educational background includes:

• Nursing Assistant certification
• Clinical Nurse training
• Master in Public Health Science
• Ongoing Ph.D. in Health and Sports Science

Dr. Malnes specializes in active travel research, particularly examining adolescent walking and cycling behaviors to school through the multi-center "School In Motion" (ScIM) project. Her work investigates environmental determinants of physical activity using geographic mapping data, with implications for sustainable transportation and chronic disease prevention. Earlier research focused on e-biking interventions among inactive adults, demonstrating approximately 7% improvement in physical fitness over 8 months. Her methodological expertise includes applied statistics and objective physical activity measurement.

Analysis of her publication record reveals a consistent trajectory in transportation and physical activity research, with increasing methodological sophistication from pilot studies to cluster randomized controlled trials. Her work bridges public health, sports science, and urban planning, with growing emphasis on objective measurement techniques and environmental determinants of behavior.

As an educator, Dr. Malnes supervises bachelor's and master's students in clinical practice studies and research methods. She leads a university-wide SPSS course package for staff and students, demonstrating commitment to research methodology education. Her clinical nursing experience with elderly patients in hospital and community settings informs her holistic approach to health promotion.

Dr. Malnes collaborates within two research groups: Health, Behavior, Diversity, and Social Inclusion; and Physical Activity and Health across the LifeSpan (PAHLS), reflecting her interdisciplinary approach to population health challenges.