The relationship between climate change and mental health information-seeking: a preliminary investigation

Abstract

Purpose

Extreme weather events are known to be detrimental to well-being, and there is a growing interest in anxiety connected to unfolding climate change. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the global association between information-seeking relating to climate change and mental health.

Design/methodology/approach

By using Big Data from Google searches and website traffic, evidence is presented that worldwide information-seeking for climate change and mental health-related terms are highly correlated. Regression analyses account for seasonal variation that is known to influence online searches for mental health terms.

Findings

There is an association between climate change and mental health-related information-seeking for the period of 2006–2020. This paper proposes causal models to account for the data, with future directions for how these could be tested.

Originality/value

This is the first paper according to the author’s knowledge to demonstrate a strong association between information-seeking for climate change and mental health and highlights the importance of considering mental health issues in the era of rapid climate change.

Citation

Williams, M.O. (2021), "The relationship between climate change and mental health information-seeking: a preliminary investigation", Journal of Public Mental Health, Vol. 20 No. 1, pp. 69-78. https://doi.org/10.1108/JPMH-04-2020-0025