The impact of eco-anxiety and extreme weather proximity on young people's happiness and life satisfaction : a natural experiment
Fernandez-Urbano, Roger (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament de Sociologia)
Bulut, Hamid (Universitat de Luxemburg)
Samuel, Robin (Universitat de Luxemburg)
Centre d'Estudis Demogràfics

Date:	2025
Abstract:	This article investigates how eco-anxiety relates to subjective well-being among young people in Luxembourg, and whether this relationship is modified by proximity to extreme weather events. Luxembourg, with one of the highest GDPs in the world, represents a noteworthy case of a nation that also consistently ranks among the happiest. Yet it experienced a severe flooding in the summer of 2021. Using data from a natural experiment, we find that eco-anxiety is positively associated with happiness, an affective dimension of well-being, but unrelated to life satisfaction, a cognitive dimension. This association remains unchanged after experiencing the flooding, even among individuals directly affected by it. Our study contributes to the growing body of research on the relationship between well-being and eco-anxiety by disentangling the affective and cognitive dimensions of well-being in the context of an extreme weather event, using a natural experiment design. Overall, our findings suggest that eco-anxiety may be partly shaped by social desirability, rather than by intrinsic motivational beliefs and psychological distress. This conclusion may contribute to explaining why young people in high-income countries remain less inclined to take action against climate change.
Note:	Altres ajuts: Ministry of Education, Children and Youth and the Luxembourg National Research Fund (grant number 147204589)
Rights:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, fins i tot amb finalitats comercials, sempre i quan es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Subject:	Eco-anxiety ; Subjective well-being ; Happiness ; Life satisfaction ; Climate change ; Youth
Published in:	Journal of happiness studies, Vol. 26, Núm.117 (September 2025) , ISSN 1573-7780

DOI: 10.1007/s10902-025-00950-z

23 p, 1.1 MB

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Research literature > UAB research groups literature > Research Centres and Groups (research output) > Social and Legal Sciences > Centre for Demographic Studies (CED-CERCA)
Articles > Research articles
Articles > Published articles