Vercammen Ans, Wray Britt, Crider Yoshika S, Belkin Gary, Lawrance Emma L
School of Population Health, Curtin University, Bentley, WA 6102, Australia.
School of Communication and Arts, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2025 Apr 22;122(16):e2311400122. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2311400122. Epub 2025 Apr 17.
Awareness of the threats of climate change is causing distress in increasingly documented ways, with youth particularly affected. Experiences such as climate distress and eco-anxiety have implications for the health and well-being of societies and economies, including individuals' mental health and future planning, as well as their agency beliefs. Here, we show in a large sample of US youth (n = 2,834, ages 16 to 24) that the majority of US youth experience moderate climate distress and some functional interference from climate-related thoughts and feelings and a neutral to slightly positive sense of agency. They feel concern, interest, disappointment, frustration, sadness, anxiousness, and anger as affective responses to the crisis, and a majority report that their climate awareness may influence their plans for education, travel, and family planning. The key takeaway of this study is that the psychological impacts of climate change in US youth can have either impairing or strengthening effects, especially in the face of increased perceived direct exposure. Results show that self-reported direct experience of climate-related events is associated with increased eco-anxiety, climate distress, and impact of climate change on future planning, but also fortifying responses such as psychological adaptation and agency. These findings highlight the need for health systems and communities to prepare to address increased climate distress and related concerns in US youth as perceived exposure to climate-related hazards increases, in ways that strengthen healthy coping and agency to act. These findings have implications for the mental health of populations, climate behaviors, and life choices of young people experiencing these threats.
对气候变化威胁的认识正以越来越多有记录的方式引发困扰，年轻人尤其受到影响。气候困扰和生态焦虑等经历对社会和经济的健康与福祉有影响，包括个人的心理健康、未来规划以及他们的能动信念。在此，我们在一大群美国年轻人（n = 2834，年龄在16至24岁之间）中发现，大多数美国年轻人经历中度气候困扰，以及一些来自与气候相关的思想和感受的功能干扰，还有一种中立到略积极的能动感。他们将担忧、兴趣、失望、沮丧、悲伤、焦虑和愤怒作为对危机的情感反应，并且大多数人报告说他们的气候意识可能会影响他们的教育、旅行和计划生育计划。这项研究的关键要点是，气候变化对美国年轻人的心理影响可能具有损害或增强作用，尤其是在感知到的直接暴露增加的情况下。结果表明，自我报告的与气候相关事件的直接经历与生态焦虑、气候困扰以及气候变化对未来规划的影响增加相关，但也与心理适应和能动等强化反应相关。这些发现凸显了卫生系统和社区需要做好准备，以应对随着美国年轻人感知到的与气候相关危害暴露增加而出现的更多气候困扰及相关担忧，通过加强健康应对和采取行动的能力来做到这一点。这些发现对受这些威胁影响的人群的心理健康、气候行为和年轻人的生活选择具有启示意义。
