Climate Anxiety and Mental Health in Germany

Abstract

Our aim was to investigate the association between climate anxiety and mental health in a general adult population. Cross-sectional data of the general adult population were used (n = 3091 individuals aged 18 to 74 years; March 2022). The Climate Anxiety Scale was used to assess climate anxiety. Probable depression was quantified using the PHQ-9, and the GAD-7 was used to assess probable anxiety. Adjusted for sex, age, marital status, having children in the household, highest level of school education, employment situation, smoking behavior, alcohol intake, frequency of sports activities, chronic illnesses and self-rated health and coronavirus anxiety, multiple logistic regressions showed that a higher climate anxiety was associated with a higher likelihood of probable depression (OR: 1.37, 95% CI: 1.25–1.50). Moreover, regressions showed that a higher climate anxiety was associated with a higher likelihood of probable anxiety (OR: 1.27, 95% CI: 1.15–1.40). In conclusion, our study demonstrated an association between climate anxiety and mental health in Germany. Further research (e.g., based on longitudinal data) is required to confirm our study’s findings.