Eco‐anxiety in Tampa Bay: Prevalence, risk factors and recommendations for environmental practitioners

Abstract As the environmental crisis grows, concerns over its impact on mental health are rising. A growing body of research is investigating novel ecological emotions, with eco‐anxiety garnering significant attention. Yet much of the discourse has centred around clinical implications, leaving environmental practitioners feeling powerless to address experiences of eco‐anxiety within their community. This study contributes to the emerging work on eco‐anxiety and translates these findings into recommendations for environmental practitioners. A survey was distributed to a large, representative sample of the public and environmentally engaged ( ‘in‐network’ ) residents in Tampa Bay, Florida ( n = 1216), to identify sociodemographic, behavioural and psychosocial characteristics associated with affective symptoms of eco‐anxiety. Linear and structural equation models were used to identify risk factors associated with progressive changes in eco‐anxiety scores, as well as key differences in symptom severity classifications. Overall, 17% of the public and 8% of the in‐network audience exhibit moderate‐to‐severe eco‐anxiety symptoms. Subjective well‐being was negatively associated with eco‐anxiety. Well‐being mediated the effects of age, education, place identity, solastalgia and other characteristics on eco‐anxiety. Eco‐anxiety was also negatively associated with perceptions of environmental justice, and positively associated with nature relatedness, negative experiences of change and engagement in pro‐environmental behaviours. Residents' sense of response efficacy‐based hope and their engagement in nature‐based activities, however, were most predictive of the severity of eco‐anxiety symptoms. Environmental practitioners are not powerless to assist community members on their path to wellness in this time of rapid environmental change. Approaches from clinical psychology interventions can be used to embed eco‐anxiety coping tools into environmental practitioners' various messages, programs and activities to help build emotional resilience, foster social connection and illuminate problem‐ and meaning‐focused coping strategies within their communities. Several primary and secondary enhancements are discussed that can be incorporated within environmental practitioners' existing toolkit, including experiential education, citizen science and volunteer activities. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.