Work-In-Progress (WIP) Series: Marshall Burke

Mental Health in a Changing Climate

Zoom Presentation Recording

We use data from vital statistics, emergency departments, surveys, and social media to study the impacts of warming temperatures on mental health in the United States (US).  We find consistent evidence that increases in temperature worsen a variety of mental health outcomes, including suicide, mental health-related Emergency Department (ED) visits, and being unhappy on social media.  Effects are not moderated by socioeconomics and appear to have strengthened in recent years.  Effects are perhaps consistent with multiple biological and social pathways, and better understanding these pathways will be critical to informing interventions to limit the impacts of future climate change on mental health outcomes.