Associations between mitigation-oriented and adaptive behaviors and climate change anxiety: a cross-sectional study among college undergraduates

Background: Mental and physical health effects stemming from climate change are increasingly prevalent while adaptation to protect health has not kept pace. Climate change anxiety (CCA) is an area of research that may inform behavioral responses to climate hazards. We examined whether CCA was associated with pro-environmental behaviors or the adoption of health-protective adaptive measures, such as accessing air cleaners for wildfires or cooling systems (e.g. heat pump, air conditioning) for extreme heat. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study with an online survey of 451 college students for CCA using a validated scale and asked students about their mitigating pro-environmental behavior and if they had taken any adaptive measures. We assessed four subscales representing distinct dimensions of climate-related responses. Quasi-Poisson and binomial logistic regression models were used to analyze behavioral outcomes related to mitigation (pro-environmental behaviors) and adaptation measures (e.g., access to air cleaners; cooling). Results: All four subscales were significantly associated with the number of pro-environmental behaviors (p-values 2x10-16 to 0.007) and all subscales except functional impairment were significantly associated with the binary outcome of the adoption of adaptive health behaviors (p-values 0.008 to 0.020). Conclusions: These findings suggest that certain dimensions of climate-related psychological responses are associated with both pro-environmental behaviors and reported engagement with protective adaptive measures. The relationship between emotions related to climate change and behavior that may reduce vulnerability from climate change related health hazards is worthy of further exploration.