Anxiety, Worry, and Grief in a Time of Environmental and Climate Crisis: A Narrative Review

This narrative review synthesises existing research on the relationship between negative emotions related to climate change and other environmental problems, and mental wellbeing, across different regions and cultural contexts. The authors examine anxiety, worry and grief as distinct but related phenomena, arguing that these emotional responses are, in most cases, normal and potentially constructive rather than pathological, particularly where worry motivates engagement and action rather than avoidance. They review evidence on how these emotions are distributed across populations, noting particular vulnerability among young people, those with direct experience of environmental loss, and communities with close cultural or livelihood ties to land and place. The review also considers methodological challenges in measuring climate emotions, including how differently worded survey questions can shape reported findings, and calls for more place-based and culturally relevant approaches to understanding and supporting people experiencing climate distress, rather than treating these responses as uniform across contexts.