• DOI:10.1007/s00038-009-0112-0
• Corpus ID: 22561555

Climate change and mental health: a causal pathways framework

@article{Berry2010ClimateCA,
  title={Climate change and mental health: a causal pathways framework},
  author={Helen Louise Berry and Kathryn J Bowen and Tord Kjellstrom},
  journal={International Journal of Public Health},
  year={2010},
  volume={55},
  pages={123-132}
}

• H. Berry, K. Bowen, T. Kjellstrom
• Published 1 April 2010
• Medicine
• International Journal of Public Health

ObjectivesClimate change will bring more frequent, long lasting and severe adverse weather events and these changes will affect mental health. We propose an explanatory framework to enhance consideration of how these effects may operate and to encourage debate about this important aspect of the health impacts of climate change.MethodsLiterature review.ResultsClimate change may affect mental health directly by exposing people to trauma. It may also affect mental health indirectly, by affecting (1) physical health (for example, extreme heat exposure causes heat exhaustion in vulnerable people, and associated mental health consequences) and (2) community wellbeing. Within community, wellbeing is a sub-process in which climate change erodes physical environments which, in turn, damage social environments. Vulnerable people and places, especially in low-income countries, will be particularly badly affected.ConclusionsDifferent aspects of climate change may affect mental health through direct and indirect pathways, leading to serious mental health problems, possibly including increased suicide mortality. We propose that it is helpful to integrate these pathways in an explanatory framework, which may assist in developing public health policy, practice and research.