Climate Shocks, Adaptation, and Well-Being in Ghana: A Mixed Methods Study

The research paper adopts a mixed methods approach to understanding climate shock and consequences in the Ghanaian context. The nationally representative Ghana Living Standards Household Survey (GLSS) is merged with district-level geocoded information on climate events to quantitatively explore associations between climate shocks and farm inputs demand. Results show commercial purchases of inputs as a potential coping strategy among agricultural households. The remainder of the paper uses qualitative methods to better understand other adaptation strategies. Interviews with women shine more light on their housework adjustments and implications for leisure. Adaptation is, however, not a universal response to climate change and disaster events. Despite observed mental health associations, the paper highlights the role of religion in passive dispositions when it is believed that disaster events are divine and do not merit an adaptation response. The study improves understanding of individuals’ adaptation, and non-adaptation, responses to climate shocks in Ghana.