Systematic Review on the Assessments of Eco Anxiety

Abstract

Eco-anxiety is increasingly recognised as an important psychological response to environmental degradation and climate change, yet its assessment remains conceptually and methodologically fragmented. This systematic review synthesised the development and psychometric characteristics of instruments used to measure eco-anxiety and related constructs. Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, studies published between 1973 and 2023 were identified through major psychological and biomedical databases. Early measures primarily assessed environmental concern and distress, whereas recent instruments have attempted to capture the emotional, cognitive, behavioural, and functional dimensions of eco-anxiety. Scales such as the Climate Change Anxiety Scale, Hogg Eco-Anxiety Scale, and Climate Change Emotions Scale represent notable advances, but inconsistencies in factor structures, limited cross-cultural validation, and reliance on self-report data remain key limitations. Overall, the review highlights the absence of a comprehensive and culturally generalisable assessment tool and underscores the need for theoretically grounded, multidimensional measures to advance research and clinical practice in this emerging field.