Worry related to climate change in Brazilian adults.

Abstract

Objective: Climate change is happening and feeling anxiety can be seen as a natural response to it. Climate anxiety is worry about the climate crisis and can be related to specific emotions and thoughts. The aims of this study were to assess the prevalence of worry about climate change and describe the emotions and thoughts associated with it in Brazilian adults.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with participants aged 18-42 years (n = 323). Data were collected online using a questionnaire developed by Hickman et al., which assesses worry, thoughts, and feelings about climate change.

Results: 88.5% of the participants were worried about climate change. Those who were worried reported feelings of sadness, powerlessness, fear, and anxiety more often. The most frequent thoughts were "People have failed to take care of the planet," "The future is frightening," "My family's security will be threatened," and "Humanity is doomed."

Discussion: In this sample, the majority of the individuals were concerned about climate change and showed more negative emotions and thoughts when compared to individuals who were not concerned. Future studies should take care not to interpret natural worries and anxiety responses to climate change as pathological.