This study examined the associations between climate anxiety and adverse psychosocial outcomes among undergraduate students in Ghana, and explored potential mediating factors. We analyzed cross-sectional data from 1047 undergraduate students aged ≥ 18 years in Ghana. Climate anxiety, sleep problems, self-rated health, and meaning in life were assessed using standardized self-report measures.
Multivariable ordinary least squares regression and a bootstrapping approach were used to estimate direct and indirect associations. Climate anxiety was significantly and positively associated with sleep problems (B = 0.15, 95% CI 0.11–0.19), poor self-rated health (B = 0.12, 95% CI 0.09–0.15), and poor meaning in life (B = 0.12, 95% CI 0.09–0.15). Parallel mediation analyses indicated that generalized anxiety symptoms and sedentary behaviour significantly accounted for part of these associations, while social isolation showed minimal or non-significant mediating role.
Climate anxiety is associated with adverse psychosocial well-being among undergraduate students in Ghana. These findings highlight the need for interventions targeting mental health support, adaptive coping, and healthy lifestyles in university populations. We appreciate our study respondents for their time and participation, which made this research possible.
We also acknowledge the support of lecturers and research assistants in facilitating the data collection phase. The authors did not receive support from any organization for the submitted work. Department of Geography and Rural Development, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana Emmanuel Nyaaba, Felix Asante & Lawrence Guodaar Department of Geography, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada Mohammed-Gazali Hambali & Jemima Nomunume Baada Department of Meteorology and Climate Science, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana Menzies School of Health Research, Charles Darwin University, Alice Springs, NT, Australia The authors declare no competing interests.
The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki, and approved by the Humanities and Social Science Research Ethics Committee (HuSSREC) of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana (Ref: HuSSREC/AP/257/VOL.4). Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study. All participants provided informed consent for their data to be used for research and publication purposes.
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