Eleanor King
Pronouns: She/Her
Research Mentor(s): Peter Larson
Research Mentor School/College/Department: Institute of Social Research/School of Public Health/SEAS / Other
Program: UROP
Session: Session 1 (9:00am – 9:50am)
Authors: Eleanor King, Peter S. Larson
Abstract
Introduction: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change found that rapidly increasing climate change related disaster events pose a rising threat to mental health and well-being. Integrating climate considerations in mental health programs and policy will be salient, as will building upon global commitments, developing community-based approaches to reduce vulnerabilities, and closing the large funding gap that exists for mental health and psychosocial support. However, the impact of climate change on mental health is not well understood. This study aims to survey the state of climate change related mental health on a global scale. We will identify climate disaster alongside trends in mental health and well-being as well as the efficacy of community response to improving mental health outcomes. Methods: We will conduct a systematic literature review of three major academic research databases: PubMed, ISI Web of Science, and Scopus using the following search strategy: (“Climate change” OR “Global Warming”) AND (“hurricane” OR “flooding” OR “typhoon”) AND (“Mental Disorder” OR “Mental illness” OR “Mental Health” OR “mental health” OR “depression”). Only studies published in scholarly journals with defined health outcomes associated with climate change or climate disaster were considered for inclusion. We excluded newspaper articles, conference proceedings and short communications. Results: In the initial search, we found 262 unique research papers. Sixteen of the 262 papers met the inclusion criteria. Eleven of the sixteen papers examined mental health following climate disaster in North America, with five in Asia and Europe. Conclusion: Research regarding the impacts of climate change on mental health is limited. As climate change worsens and younger generations experience the stress of more frequent climate disasters, poor mental health effects will worsen.
