Impact of Climate Change on Social and Mental Well-Being: Chapter 14 - Impact of environmental identity and eco-anxiety on mental health among two generation people (Gen X and Z)

Background: Environmental identity emphasis on the sense of connection one feels with nature and how one sees themselves as part of one's natural settings (Clayton, 2003). Eco-anxiety is a state of fear and worry over the environmental and climatic changes. With enormous changes happening in climatic and environmental conditions over the years, assessing the variables on two different generations might extract the changes and impact over the decades. Aim: To investigate the impact of environmental identity and eco-anxiety on mental health among two generation people (Gen X and Z). Methods: A total of 300 samples have been chosen in which 150 samples are from Generation X (people born from 1965 to 1980) and 150 samples from Generation Z (people born from 1997 to 2012). The tools used in the study were Environmental Identity Scale by Susan Clayton (2003), Hogg Eco-Anxiety Scale by Teaghan L. Hogg, Samantha K. Stanley, Lean V. O'Brien, Marc S. Wilson, and Clare R. Watsford, and Mental Health Inventory by Jagdish and A.K. Srivastva. Statistical analysis: Frequency and percentages will be used for the categorical variables along with representative figures. Correlation will be used to see the significant relationship between variables. Regression will be used to see the significant impact of environmental identity and eco-anxiety on mental health. Independent sample t-test will be used to see the significant difference between the variables among Generation X and Z. Results: The study revealed that environmental identity and eco-anxiety are positively correlated (r=0.713∗∗) with each other and negatively correlated with the mental health (r=−0.723∗∗ and −0.617∗∗, respectively). The linear regression test (Sig.=0.000) denotes the impact of environmental identity and eco-anxiety on mental health. The independent t-test (t=38.637, 329.776, and 274.132) between Gen X and Z reveals that there is a significant difference in the levels of environmental identity, eco-anxiety, and mental health. Conclusion: Every individual's identity is determined by various aspects of one's life and environmental aspects are part of it too. When an individual identifies more with nature and is connected, more they perceive the climatic and environmental changes happening around which would make them worry over it which further might impact on one's mental health.