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Psychometric Properties of the Climate Change Worry Scale

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  • Alan E. Stewart

    (College of Education, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA)

Abstract

Climate change worry involves primarily verbal-linguistic thoughts about the changes that may occur in the climate system and the possible effects of these changes. Such worry is one of several possible psychological responses (e.g., fear, anxiety, depression, and trauma) to climate change. Within this article, the psychometric development of the ten-item Climate Change Worry Scale (CCWS) is detailed in three studies. The scale was developed to assess proximal worry about climate change rather than social or global impacts. Study 1 provided evidence that the CCWS items were internally consistent, constituted a single factor, and that the facture structure of the items was invariant for men and women. The results from Study 1 also indicated a good fit with a Rasch model of the items. Study 2 affirmed the internal consistency of the CCWS items and indicated that peoples’ responses to the measure were temporally stable over a two-week test–retest interval ( r = 0.91). Study 3 provided support for the convergent and divergent validity of the CCWS through its pattern of correlations with several established clinical and weather-related measures. The limitations of the studies and the possible uses of the CCWS were discussed. The current work represents a starting point.

Suggested Citation

  • Alan E. Stewart, 2021. "Psychometric Properties of the Climate Change Worry Scale," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-22, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:2:p:494-:d:477493
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    3. Alan E. Stewart & Harrison E. Chapman & Jackson B. L. Davis, 2023. "Anxiety and Worry about Six Categories of Climate Change Impacts," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(1), pages 1-24, December.
    4. Taha Hannachi & Sonya Yakimova & Alain Somat, 2024. "A Follow up on the Continuum Theory of Eco-Anxiety: Analysis of the Climate Change Anxiety Scale Using Item Response Theory among French Speaking Population," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(9), pages 1-16, August.
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    6. Martin, Gina & Cosma, Alina & Roswell, Tasha & Anderson, Martin & Treble, Matthew & Leslie, Kathleen & Card, Kiffer G. & Closson, Kalysha & Kennedy, Angel & Gislason, Maya, 2023. "Measuring negative emotional responses to climate change among young people in survey research: A systematic review," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 329(C).
    7. Catriona Soutar & Anne P. F. Wand, 2022. "Understanding the Spectrum of Anxiety Responses to Climate Change: A Systematic Review of the Qualitative Literature," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(2), pages 1-23, January.
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    10. Csilla Ágoston & Benedek Csaba & Bence Nagy & Zoltán Kőváry & Andrea Dúll & József Rácz & Zsolt Demetrovics, 2022. "Identifying Types of Eco-Anxiety, Eco-Guilt, Eco-Grief, and Eco-Coping in a Climate-Sensitive Population: A Qualitative Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(4), pages 1-17, February.
    11. Ana Telma Pereira & Carolina Cabaços & Cristiana C. Marques & Ana Isabel Araújo & António Macedo, 2024. "Perfectionism and Cognitive and Emotional Reactions to Climate Change and Psychological Distress," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(21), pages 1-15, October.
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