Eco-anxiety refers to psychological distress arising from the anticipated impacts of planetary crises. Even though young people are at major risk for both psychopathology and the long-term consequences of planetary crises, no psychometrically validated German instrument currently exists to assess eco-anxiety in this age group, and research on age differences in eco-anxiety remains limited. The present study aimed to replicate the psychometric properties of the German validation study of the Hogg Eco-Anxiety Scale (HEAS) in a younger age group (N = 414; Mage = 20.24, SDage = 2.80, age range: 15–25) as well as the four-factor structure (Affective Symptoms, Rumination, Behavioral Symptoms, and Anxiety about Personal Impact). By combining the present sample with two additional samples, measurement invariance across two age groups (15–25 years vs. >25 years) was established, suggesting that the HEAS measures eco-anxiety similarly across ages. All hypotheses were confirmed; additionally, latent mean comparisons show that the younger group experiences higher levels of eco-anxiety than the older group. Exploratory analyses further found that participants demonstrating elevated symptoms of depression or anxiety reported significantly higher levels of eco-anxiety across all HEAS subscales. Moreover, individuals residing in metropolitan areas scored higher on the scale Anxiety about the Personal Impact compared to participants from rural regions. Enhancing the precision of eco-anxiety assessment depending on age, clinical status, and geographical contexts enables the targeted development and implementation of preventive and therapeutic interventions according to the level of severity indicated by this instrument.
Phan et al. (Thu,) studied this question.