The Role of Behavioral Medicine in Addressing Climate Change-Related Health Inequities

Abstract

Climate change is the greatest threat to global health in human history. It has been declared a public health emergency by the World Health Organization and leading researchers from academic institutions around the globe. Structural racism disproportionately exposes communities targeted for marginalization to the harmful consequences of climate change through greater risk of exposure and sensitivity to climate hazards and less adaptive capacity to the health threats of climate change. Given its interdisciplinary approach to integrating behavioral, psychosocial, and biomedical knowledge, the discipline of behavioral medicine is uniquely qualified to address the systemic causes of climate change-related health inequities and can offer a perspective that is currently missing from many climate and health equity efforts. In this article, we summarize relevant concepts, describe how climate change and structural racism intersect to exacerbate health inequities, and recommend six strategies with the greatest potential for addressing climate-related health inequities.

Climate Change Harm Perception Among U.S. Adults in the NCI Health Information National Trends Survey, 2022

“…[15][16][17] Further, findings indicate that both non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic populations perceive climate change as a threat to their health, consistent with current research documenting communities with greater proportions of Black and Hispanic residents are disproportionately burdened by the adverse effects of climate change. 18,19 The current study also found a link between trust in certain health information sources and climate change harm perception, consistent with previous research that found an association between trust in scientists and belief in global warming and climate change in general. 20,21 Understanding which health information sources are associated with climate change harm perception is particularly important given that belief in climate change has been associated with greater support for environmentally protective policies and behaviors.…”

Climate change and health equity: A research agenda for psychological science.

“…Many existing cross-disciplinary syntheses neglect psychological and behavioral processes that may also contribute to climate health inequities (see Nogueira et al, 2022;Thomas et al, 2019). Drawing from recent empirical findings and theory within psychology, below, we highlight a few select psychological processes that may impact vulnerability and exacerbate climate-related health inequities as illustrative This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.…”

“…We currently live in unstable climatic conditions that require transformational approaches to public health. Understanding psychosocial, behavioral, and systemic drivers of climate-related health inequities is critical for protecting and improving human health; yet few roadmaps currently exist for researchers and practitioners who seek to examine and address these processes (Edmondson et al, 2022; NASEM, 2022; Nogueira et al, 2022). Below, we offer six recommendations to advance psychological research that is responsive to the complex and rapidly evolving challenges of the climate crisis and supports the needs of frontline communities.…”

“…Although disparate health impacts of climate change were an early focus of social scientists and increasingly inform the priorities of health researchers and health care professionals, they have received remarkably limited attention to date from psychologists (Chen et al, 1983; Nogueira et al, 2022). As a “hub” science, psychology stands to play a critical role in developing a “whole-of-science” approach to addressing climate-related health inequities.…”

The climate crisis is here: a primer and call to action for public health nutrition researchers and practitioners in high-income countries

“…Finally, powerful and intersecting structural factors are key drivers of food, health and climate inequities (49) . Therefore, overarching solutions that address these structural factors are also needed to improve diets and reduce these inequities.…”