IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v20y2023i22p7063-d1280367.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Adolescents Concerned about Climate Change: A Hermeneutic Study

Author

Listed:
  • Kailie Drumm

    (Nursing Program, Lower Columbia College, Longview, WA 98632, USA)

  • Roxanne Vandermause

    (Omaha Division, College of Nursing, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198, USA)

Abstract

Climate change is a public health threat on a global scale. Over the last two decades, research has uncovered the myriad health effects of climate change and its associated costs. The literature is also beginning to show the direct and indirect effects of climate change to be an indicator of increased adverse mental health outcomes including excessive worry, anxiety, grief, and post-traumatic stress disorder. The development of scales to measure some of these effects in adult populations has shown the critical need to understand the various ways climate change affects mental well-being in adolescent populations who are at a critical juncture in psychological development. The purposes of this study were to understand the lived experience of adolescents who are concerned about climate change and uncover the meaning of climate change concern for adolescents as informed by emerging patterns. This study utilized Hermeneutic Phenomenology as a philosophical foundation and methodological approach for data retrieval and analysis. An interview-based approach with a purposeful sample (n = 11, aged 12–17 years) revealed the multi-layered elements of climate change concern and its effects. Three patterns emerged: Climate Change as a Temporal Threat and Pressure, Awareness and Concern as a Continuum, and Experiencing Concern and Making Meaning. These findings may now inform interdisciplinary knowledge on upstream mitigation efforts and the promotion of positive outcomes relating to climate change. The need for focused educational attention to adolescent behaviors and concerns is explicated and exemplified.

Suggested Citation

  • Kailie Drumm & Roxanne Vandermause, 2023. "Adolescents Concerned about Climate Change: A Hermeneutic Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(22), pages 1-15, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2023:i:22:p:7063-:d:1280367
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/22/7063/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/22/7063/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Katie Hayes & Blake Poland, 2018. "Addressing Mental Health in a Changing Climate: Incorporating Mental Health Indicators into Climate Change and Health Vulnerability and Adaptation Assessments," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-19, August.
    2. Alan E. Stewart, 2021. "Psychometric Properties of the Climate Change Worry Scale," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-22, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Shiri Shinan-Altman & Yaira Hamama-Raz, 2023. "The Association between Climate Change Exposure and Climate Change Worry among Israeli Adults: The Interplay of Risk Appraisal, Collective Efficacy, Age, and Gender," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-14, September.
    2. Hongjun Yu & Yiling Song & Yangyang Wang & Xiaoxin Wang & Haoxuan Li & Xiaolu Feng & Miao Yu, 2023. "The Impact of Temperature on 24-Hour Movement Behaviors among Chinese Freshmen Students," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(6), pages 1-14, March.
    3. Israel-Javier Juma-Michilena & Maria-Eugenia Ruiz-Molina & Irene Gil-Saura & Sergio Belda-Miquel, 2024. "Pro-environmental behaviours of generation Z: A cross-cultural approach," International Review on Public and Nonprofit Marketing, Springer;International Association of Public and Non-Profit Marketing, vol. 21(3), pages 1-29, September.
    4. 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.
    5. Heba Mohtady Ali & Jamie Ranse & Anne Roiko & Cheryl Desha, 2022. "Healthcare Workers’ Resilience Toolkit for Disaster Management and Climate Change Adaptation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(19), pages 1-13, September.
    6. Lisa Woodland & Priyanjali Ratwatte & Revati Phalkey & Emma L. Gillingham, 2023. "Investigating the Health Impacts of Climate Change among People with Pre-Existing Mental Health Problems: A Scoping Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(8), pages 1-33, April.
    7. Blake Poland & Anne Gloger & Garrett T. Morgan & Norene Lach & Suzanne F. Jackson & Rylan Urban & Imara Rolston, 2021. "A Connected Community Approach: Citizens and Formal Institutions Working Together to Build Community-Centred Resilience," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(19), pages 1-17, September.
    8. Diego Guidolin & Deanna Anderlini & Guido Maura & Manuela Marcoli & Pietro Cortelli & Giovanna Calandra-Buonaura & Amina S. Woods & Luigi F. Agnati, 2019. "A New Integrative Theory of Brain-Body-Ecosystem Medicine: From the Hippocratic Holistic View of Medicine to Our Modern Society," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(17), pages 1-20, August.
    9. Tao Liu & Lin He & Wenhuan Yu & Thomas Freudenreich & Xianhao Lin, 2022. "Effect of Green Plants on Individuals’ Mental Stress during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Preliminary Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-11, October.
    10. Ruohan Zhang & Jialan Zhang & Kuan Zhang & Dingde Xu & Yanbin Qi & Xin Deng, 2024. "Do Clean Toilets Help Improve Farmers’ Mental Health? Empirical Evidence from China’s Rural Toilet Revolution," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-14, January.
    11. Katie Hayes & Peter Berry & Kristie L. Ebi, 2019. "Factors Influencing the Mental Health Consequences of Climate Change in Canada," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(9), pages 1-13, May.
    12. Peter Berry & Paddy M. Enright & Joy Shumake-Guillemot & Elena Villalobos Prats & Diarmid Campbell-Lendrum, 2018. "Assessing Health Vulnerabilities and Adaptation to Climate Change: A Review of International Progress," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-25, November.
    13. Gonca Kurt & Recep Akdur, 2024. "Under What Conditions Does Climate Change Worry Contribute to Climate Action in Turkey: What Moderates This Relationship?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(6), pages 1-18, March.
    14. Michaela Roberts & Kathryn Colley & Margaret Currie & Antonia Eastwood & Kuang-Heng Li & Lisa M. Avery & Lindsay C. Beevers & Isobel Braithwaite & Martin Dallimer & Zoe G. Davies & Helen L. Fisher & C, 2023. "The Contribution of Environmental Science to Mental Health Research: A Scoping Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(7), pages 1-36, March.
    15. Kristie L. Ebi & Peter Berry & Katie Hayes & Christopher Boyer & Samuel Sellers & Paddy M. Enright & Jeremy J. Hess, 2018. "Stress Testing the Capacity of Health Systems to Manage Climate Change-Related Shocks and Stresses," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(11), pages 1-16, October.
    16. 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).
    17. Filip Franciszek Karuga & Bartosz Szmyd & Karolina Petroniec & Aleksandra Walter & Agnieszka Pawełczyk & Marcin Sochal & Piotr Białasiewicz & Dominik Strzelecki & Maria Respondek-Liberska & Monika Tad, 2022. "The Causes and Role of Antinatalism in Poland in the Context of Climate Change, Obstetric Care, and Mental Health," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-13, October.
    18. Mary Fox & Christopher Zuidema & Bridget Bauman & Thomas Burke & Mary Sheehan, 2019. "Integrating Public Health into Climate Change Policy and Planning: State of Practice Update," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(18), pages 1-22, September.
    19. 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.
    20. Lindsay P. Galway & Thomas Beery & Kelsey Jones-Casey & Kirsti Tasala, 2019. "Mapping the Solastalgia Literature: A Scoping Review Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(15), pages 1-24, July.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2023:i:22:p:7063-:d:1280367. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.