Climate Change Related Depression, Anxiety and Stress Symptoms Perceived by Medical Students

Abstract

Climate change has drastic consequences on human physical and mental health. However, research on the psychological effects of climate change awareness is still inconclusive. To examine the mental burden posed by climate change awareness and potential resilience factors, n = 203 medical students were surveyed about their awareness of the implications of climate change. Furthermore, well-established mental health questionnaires (PHQ-9, GAD-7, PTSS-10, PSQ-20) were presented twice, in their original form and in a modified version to specifically ask about the respective psychological burden regarding climate change. For identification of potential resilience factors, measures for attachment style (RQ), structural abilities (OPD-SF), and sense of coherence (SOC-13) were used. The results of our study suggest that medical students in Germany have an increased risk to suffer from mental health problems and predominantly experience significant perceived stress in regard to climate change. However, the reported stress does not yet translate into depressive, anxious, or traumatic symptoms. Climate-related perceived stress correlates negatively with potential resilience factors preventing the development of mental disorders such as attachment style, structural abilities, and sense of coherence.

The effects of climate change awareness on mental health: Comparison of climate anxiety and hopelessness levels in Turkish youth

“…Furthermore, increasing awareness of climate crisis and future negative consequences, fuelled by media information, underlies a potentially widespread psychological phenomenon referred to as ‘eco-anxiety’ (Hayes et al, 2018; Pihkala, 2018). In a study examining depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms related to climate crisis among medical students, 85% of the sample reported feeling more concerned about climate crisis today compared to 5 years ago, 75% felt more concerned today compared to 3 years ago, and 33% felt more concerned today compared to last year (Schwaab et al, 2022). This could be attributed, among other factors, to the increasing coverage of climate crisis-related news in the media and an overall rise in knowledge about climate crisis (Romanello et al, 2021).…”

Eco-emotions and Psychoterratic Syndromes: Reshaping Mental Health Assessment Under Climate Change

“…However, it is experienced by numerous people who do not suffer from existing mental health issues [36] and it may not have a clinically significant negative effect on mental health or impaired functioning [46]. Instead, it could be a pro-active emotion that alerts to the environmental challenges, prompts cognitive engagement, and lead to pro-environmental behavior [74,83]. It has been suggested to conceptualize it as a form of "practical anxiety," ie, the anxiety experienced when there is uncertainty about what the right thing to do is, leading to problem-solving attitudes [36,74], engaging in climate actions and environmental activism (eventually buffering the mental health consequences of anxiety and transforming their feelings into optimism and determination) [46,84], and having also a transformative role in society: the people who experience climate anxiety can be seen as signalers who alert the others that a critical level has been reached and urgent actions are needed [6].…”

“…The emotional reactions to the loss of nature can be unbearable and the conflict between the living world and industrialism (that portrays destruction positively in terms of progress or development) can re-emerge as a psychological inner struggle [65]. Nevertheless, feelings of sadness, at times overwhelming, grief, deep sorrow, tearfulness, emotional pain, are common, even if the manifestations do not result in a clinical impairment [31,83] and may lead to greater engagement in collective action behaviors [30].…”

Eco-anxiety: an additional burden for university students?

“…Studies about eco-anxiety and mental health among university students are few, either in 1st year, or among medical students [ 18 , 19 ]. Then the aim is to identify eco-anxiety in un university students and assess the relationship with health behaviour, mental health, and pro-environmental behaviours (PEB).…”