In Norway, concern has been raised as to whether more pupils than previously are now absent from school, and if so, what the reasons behind might be. Research lacks unequivocal answers, both as to why pupils are absent from school and as to whether absences are more widespread now than before. Through a close reading of 39 Scandinavian research contributions on school absence from the last 15 years, we show how the lack of unequivocal answers is connected to the researchers’ different choice of terms. Which absentee term one chooses, and how one uses it, has implications both for how the causes of school absence are understood and how the extent of school absence is measured.
