Nursing School of Porto, Porto, 4200-072, Portugal.
CINTESIS@RISE, Nursing School of Porto (ESEP), Porto, 4200-450, Portugal.
BMC Public Health. 2023 Oct 2;23(1):1905. doi: 10.1186/s12889-023-16816-z.
Worsening environmental conditions may amplify people's emotional responses to an environmental crisis (eco-anxiety). In Portugal, young people seem to be especially concerned about climate change. However, this phenomenon needs to be interpreted using accurate instruments. Thus, this study aimed to validate the Portuguese version of the Hogg Eco-Anxiety Scale (HEAS) in young adults and examine the associations among eco-anxiety, sociodemographic characteristics, and pro-environmental behaviours.
A survey was administered to 623 Portuguese university students aged between 18 and 25 years. The survey included our Portuguese translation of the HEAS (obtained through a back-translation and pretesting process), a sociodemographic assessment, and questions related to pro-environmental behaviours. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to assess the construct validity of the Portuguese version of the HEAS, and global fit indices were used to assess whether the original four-dimensional structure of the scale was reproduced. The reliability of the Portuguese version of the HEAS was evaluated by Cronbach's alpha and the intraclass correlation coefficient. Measurement invariance examined sex differences in scale interpretation. Linear regressions were used to detect whether sociodemographic variables predict eco-anxiety and whether eco-anxiety predicts pro-environmental behaviours.
The factorial structure of the original scale was replicated in the Portuguese version of the HEAS, showing good internal consistency, reliability over time and strict invariance between men and women. A higher paternal education level predicted greater eco-anxiety in children. Two dimensions of eco-anxiety-namely, rumination and anxiety about personal impacts on the environment-predicted higher engagement in pro-environmental behaviours.
The translated scale is an appropriate tool to measure eco-anxiety in the Portuguese context and should be used to collect evidence to drive environmental and health policies. An individual's education level should be considered a determinant of their emotional response to environmental conditions. Importantly, eco-anxiety can act as a protective emotional response to preserving the planet.
不断恶化的环境条件可能会放大人们对环境危机（生态焦虑）的情绪反应。在葡萄牙，年轻人似乎特别关注气候变化。然而，这种现象需要使用准确的工具进行解释。因此，本研究旨在验证 Hogg 生态焦虑量表（HEAS）的葡萄牙版本在年轻成年人中的有效性，并研究生态焦虑、社会人口特征和环保行为之间的关联。
对 623 名年龄在 18 至 25 岁之间的葡萄牙大学生进行了一项调查。该调查包括我们通过回译和预测试过程获得的 HEAS 的葡萄牙语翻译版，社会人口学评估以及与环保行为相关的问题。进行验证性因子分析以评估 HEAS 葡萄牙语版本的结构效度，并使用整体拟合指数评估量表原始的四维结构是否得到再现。通过 Cronbach's alpha 和组内相关系数评估 HEAS 葡萄牙语版本的可靠性。测量不变性检验了性别差异对量表解释的影响。线性回归用于检测社会人口学变量是否预测生态焦虑，以及生态焦虑是否预测环保行为。
原始量表的因子结构在 HEAS 的葡萄牙语版本中得到了再现，显示出良好的内部一致性、时间可靠性和男女之间的严格不变性。父亲的教育水平越高，孩子的生态焦虑程度越高。生态焦虑的两个维度——即沉思和对个人对环境影响的焦虑——预测了更高的环保行为参与度。
翻译后的量表是一种在葡萄牙语环境中测量生态焦虑的适当工具，应用于收集证据以推动环境和健康政策。一个人的教育水平应被视为其对环境条件的情绪反应的决定因素。重要的是，生态焦虑可以作为保护地球的情绪反应。
