Department of Psychology, Università di Torino, Via Verdi 10, 10124 Torino, Italy.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Sep 4;18(17):9358. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18179358.
The climate crisis poses a serious threat to the health and well-being of individuals. For many, climate change knowledge is derived from indirect exposure to information transmitted through the media. Such content can elicit a variety of emotional responses, including anger, sadness, despair, fear, and guilt. Worry and anxiety are especially common responses, usually referred to as "climate anxiety". The main objectives of this study were to analyze how exposure to climate change through the media relates to climate anxiety and individual and collective self-efficacy, and to evaluate the relationship between climate anxiety and efficacy beliefs. A total of 312 Italian university students (aged 18-26 years) participated in the research by filling out an anonymous questionnaire. Participants reported being exposed several times per week to information about climate change, especially from social media, newspapers, and television programs. Moreover, the results showed that the attention paid to information about climate change was not only positively related to climate anxiety, but also to individual and collective self-efficacy. Most notably, participants' efficacy beliefs were found to be positively related to climate anxiety. This somewhat controversial finding stresses that, in the context of pro-environmental behavior changes, a moderate level of anxiety could engender feelings of virtue, encouraging people to rethink actions with negative ecological impacts.
气候危机严重威胁着个人的健康和福祉。对于许多人来说，气候变化知识是通过间接接触媒体传播的信息获得的。这些内容可能会引发各种情绪反应，包括愤怒、悲伤、绝望、恐惧和内疚。担忧和焦虑是特别常见的反应，通常被称为“气候焦虑”。本研究的主要目的是分析通过媒体接触气候变化与气候焦虑和个人及集体效能感之间的关系，并评估气候焦虑与效能信念之间的关系。共有 312 名意大利大学生（年龄在 18-26 岁之间）通过填写匿名问卷参与了研究。参与者报告称每周会多次接触有关气候变化的信息，特别是来自社交媒体、报纸和电视节目的信息。此外，研究结果表明，对气候变化信息的关注不仅与气候焦虑呈正相关，而且与个人和集体效能感呈正相关。值得注意的是，参与者的效能信念与气候焦虑呈正相关。这一颇具争议的发现强调，在促进环保行为改变的背景下，适度的焦虑可能会产生一种美德感，鼓励人们重新思考具有负面生态影响的行为。
