Anxiety in response to the climate and environmental crises: validation of the Hogg Eco-Anxiety Scale in Germany

Stephan Heinzel; Mira Tschorn; Michael Schulte-Hutner; Fabian Schäfer; Gerhard Reese; Carina Pohle; Felix Peter; Michael Neuber; Shuyan Liu; Jan Keller; Michael Eichinger; Myriam Bechtoldt

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1239425

Anxiety in response to the climate and environmental crises: validation of the Hogg Eco-Anxiety Scale in Germany

Front Psychol. 2023 Sep 21:14:1239425. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1239425. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Stephan Heinzel^{1

2}, Mira Tschorn³, Michael Schulte-Hutner², Fabian Schäfer^{4

5}, Gerhard Reese⁶, Carina Pohle⁵, Felix Peter⁷, Michael Neuber⁸, Shuyan Liu⁹, Jan Keller², Michael Eichinger^{10

11}, Myriam Bechtoldt¹²

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Psychology, Department of Educational Sciences and Psychology, TU Dortmund University, Dortmund, Germany.
² Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
³ Social and Preventive Medicine, Department of Sports and Health Sciences, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany.
⁴ Sustainable Development, Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences, Darmstadt, Germany.
⁵ Klimabildung e.V., Bochum, Germany.
⁶ Department of Psychology, RPTU Kaiserslautern Landau, Campus Landau, Landau, Germany.
⁷ Department of School Psychology, State School Administration of Saxony-Anhalt, Halle (Saale), Germany.
⁸ Center for Technology and Society, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
⁹ Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy (CCM), Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
¹⁰ Center for Preventive Medicine and Digital Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany.
¹¹ Institute of Medical Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Informatics, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
¹² Department of Management, EBS Universität für Wirtschaft und Recht, Oestrich-Winkel, Germany.

Abstract

Background: As the climate and environmental crises unfold, eco-anxiety, defined as anxiety about the crises' devastating consequences for life on earth, affects mental health worldwide. Despite its importance, research on eco-anxiety is currently limited by a lack of validated assessment instruments available in different languages. Recently, Hogg and colleagues proposed a multidimensional approach to assess eco-anxiety. Here, we aim to translate the original English Hogg Eco-Anxiety Scale (HEAS) into German and to assess its reliability and validity in a German sample.

Methods: Following the TRAPD (translation, review, adjudication, pre-test, documentation) approach, we translated the original English scale into German. In total, 486 participants completed the German HEAS. We used Bayesian confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to assess whether the four-factorial model of the original English version could be replicated in the German sample. Furthermore, associations with a variety of emotional reactions towards the climate crisis, general depression, anxiety, and stress were investigated.

Results: The German HEAS was internally consistent (Cronbach's alphas 0.71-0.86) and the Bayesian CFA showed that model fit was best for the four-factorial model, comparable to the factorial structure of the original English scale (affective symptoms, rumination, behavioral symptoms, anxiety about personal impact). Weak to moderate associations were found with negative emotional reactions towards the climate crisis and with general depression, anxiety, and stress.

Discussion: Our results support the original four-factorial model of the scale and indicate that the German HEAS is a reliable and valid scale to assess eco-anxiety in German speaking populations.

Keywords: Hogg Eco-Anxiety Scale; climate anxiety; climate change; climate crisis; eco-anxiety; environmental crisis.