Assessing Climate Change Sensitivity among Medical Youth of Peshawar: A Social Media-Based Cross-Sectional Study

This study aimed to explore the understanding of climate change and willingness of youth in medical institutions of the Peshawar city to contribute for climate conservation in the context of the growing impact of social media platforms. Employing a quantitative research approach, data were gathered using physical and online questionnaires, reaching medical students through convenience sample method. The collected data analyzed by employing SPSS version 26. The findings displayed a moderate-to-high average climate awareness level of 3.8 out of 5, comparing with international score that confirm a sound level of climate sensitivity prevailing in medical youth. Only 6% respondents exhibited comparatively low level of awareness, indicating prevailing g knowledge gaps. No significant correlation was detected in the frequency in the exposure to social and risk regarding climate-related health issues (p = 0.82), detecting the quality of content as compared to amount of social media exposure and its influences. Analysis indicates that consumption of content on climatic issues, spread through social media platforms is linked with higher degree of awareness (β = 0.30, p < 0.001) and more willingness to work for climate issues (β ≈ 0.37, p < 0.001). The finding shows that active engagement brings positive impact and build one’s climate perceptions. More than 61% of youth showed willingness for involvement in climate campaigns, indicating an increasing trend of digital and climate activism in medical youth. However, no notable gender differences were detected in the context of climatic related awareness among medical youth (p = 0.81).