From Anger to Adaptation: The Process of Eco-anxiety in Young Australians

Eco-anxiety has emerged as a significant psychological phenomenon in response to the climate crisis, characterized by a range of negative emotions and cognitive-emotional impairment. Young people are particularly vulnerable to eco-anxiety, yet research on their lived experience of navigating this distress is limited. Using semi-structured interviews ( n = 15) and interpretive phenomenological analysis guided by Pihkala’s process model, this study qualitatively explored how young Australians (aged 18–24 years) experience and adapt to eco-anxiety. The analysis revealed a dynamic three-stage process. First, participants confronted a heavy emotional toll characterized by anger, powerlessness and despair. Second, they navigated this overwhelm by employing complicated coping strategies, combining emotional distancing for self-preservation with individual pro-environmental actions to manage anxiety. Finally, participants were actively rerouting their lives, with eco-anxiety profoundly reshaping major life decisions, particularly regarding career paths and the choice to not have children. The findings illustrate that eco-anxiety for young people is not a static state but an ongoing process of emotional, psychological and practical adaptation to the realities of the climate crisis.