Climate Change and Its Impacts on Mental Health: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Background: Climate change is increasingly recognized as a major global health threat, yet its mental health consequences remain insufficiently synthesized, particularly among vulnerable populations. While physical health impacts are well documented, growing evidence indicates that climate-related stressors exert profound psychological effects through both direct and indirect pathways.

Objective: This systematic review aimed to critically examine the mental health impacts of climate change, identify the environmental and socioeconomic pathways linking climate stressors to psychological well-being, and highlight priority populations and areas for intervention.

Methods: A systematic search was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, PsycINFO, and ScienceDirect for peer-reviewed studies published between 220 and 2025. Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, studies were screened, appraised using Joanna Briggs Institute tools, and synthesized using a narrative thematic approach. Ten high-quality studies met the inclusion criteria.

Results: The review found consistent evidence linking climate change to anxiety, depression, stress-related disorders, post-traumatic stress symptoms, and emerging climate-specific conditions such as eco-anxiety, climate grief, and solastalgia. Women, pregnant mothers, children, and socioeconomically vulnerable populations were disproportionately affected. Mental health impacts occurred through both acute exposures to extreme weather events and chronic stressors such as displacement, livelihood insecurity, and environmental degradation.

Conclusion: Climate change represents a substantial and growing threat to global mental health. Integrating mental health into climate adaptation, disaster preparedness, and public health policy is essential to reduce future psychological burden and protect vulnerable populations.