Climate change and mental health: a causal pathways framework.
OBJECTIVE
Climate 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.


METHODS
Literature review.


RESULTS
Climate 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.


CONCLUSIONS
Different 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.
Berry
Helen Louise
HL
National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, College of Medicine, Biology and Environment, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia. Helen.Berry@anu.edu.au
Bowen
Kathryn
K
Kjellstrom
Tord
T
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D057231:Climate Change; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000209:etiology; D008603:Mental Health; D011634:Public Health