Climate Change Distress Running High Among US Youth Across the Political Spectrum, Survey Finds

The comprehensive survey assessed climate-related emotions about who or what has responsibility for causing and responding to climate change, the US government’s response as well as desired and planned actions in response to climate change among US youth aged 16-25 years from all 50 states and Washington, DC.

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Climate change is causing widespread distress among US youth and affecting their beliefs and plans for the future regardless of political affiliation, a comprehensive survey of young Americans across all states has found.

Researchers evaluated responses from 15,793 individuals aged 16-25 from all 50 states and Washington, DC. The survey, published Thursday in The Lancet Planetary Health, assessed climate-related emotions and thoughts in relation to what and who is responsible for climate change and who should respond to it; desired and planned actions in response to climate change; and emotions and thoughts about the US government response to climate change.

The results leave no room for doubt: young Americans worry about climate change.

85% of respondents said they are at least moderately worried, and 57.9% very or extremely worried, about climate change and its impacts on people and the planet. 42.8% said climate change is impacting their mental health, while 38.3% indicated that their feelings about climate change negatively affect their daily life.

The link between climate change and mental health is well established. Pollution, natural disasters, and other environmental hazards are causing many people to experience increasing feelings of anxiety, distress, guilt, and helplessness over the future of our planet. In 2022, the National Institute for Health Care Management (NICHM) revealed that 61% of the world population felt anxious about climate change, and 67% reported feeling afraid. 

More on the topic: How to Cope With the Impacts of Climate Change on Mental Health

Young people demonstrate a more profound understanding and consciousness of climate change compared to adults and older generations. Global climate movements such as Greta Thunberg’s Fridays for Future have brought the topic into the mainstream in recent years and Generation Z – which comprises anyone born between 1997 and 2012 – has been nicknamed the climate generation.

Since then, the number of youth climate groups has grown exponentially around the world and climate protests have taken different shapes. Public disruption tactics have been on the rise in recent years, with groups such as Just Stop Oil and Extinction Rebellion making the headlines and often dividing the public opinion. 

Distress Running High Across the Political Spectrum

Distress is running high across the political spectrum, the results suggest. Among those saying they are worried about the impact of climate change on people and the planet, 96% identify as Democrats, 86% as independent or other, and 74% as Republican.

Climate emotions, however, reflect in the way young people are likely to vote, according to the new survey, which was conducted by researchers from NYU School of Medicine, Stanford University, Utah State University, Brown University and the University of Washington, among others.

Among the actions respondents are likely to take in response to climate change, 72.8% indicated they would vote for political candidates who support aggressive climate policy. Political party affiliation was also significantly associated with stronger endorsement of distress and desire and plans for action, the study said. Past surveys have already demonstrated Democrats have greater concern and support for climate action compared to Republicans. This is particularly true for young people, as demonstrated in a 2023 study, which found that “each new generation is more supportive of the [Green Parties] than the generation before.”

More on the topic: Elections 2024: How Much Do Voters Care About Climate?

The survey found that political party identification did not affect exposure to more types of severe weather events, demonstrating that the climate crisis is a rather country-wide issue. It found, however, that those experiencing the impacts of climate change are more willing to take action, reaffirming findings from previous research.

“Given the environmental crises happening around the world, these findings should not be surprising,” said Eric Lewandowski, clinical psychologist and clinical associate professor at the Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry at NYU’s Grossman School of Medicine. “Nonetheless, it is stunning to find such high levels of distress, and desire and plans for action, in young people across the country, in every state and of every political stripe.”