A randomized control trial of an online ACT-based eco-anxiety and sustainable well-being course for young adults

Helping young people live meaningful and happy lives in a changing climate is a major challenge for modern psychology (Pereira & Freire, 2021). Rates of eco-anxiety are rising in young people, with current estimates suggesting 45% of young people in the UK and the United States report that worry about climate change impacts their daily lives (Hickman et al., 2021). We created a novel online sustainable well-being course built on the tenets of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), positive psychology, and systems theory with the goal of reducing eco-anxiety and promoting subjective well-being. This article shares the results of the pilot study we completed to assess the feasibility and efficacy of this course. We hypothesized that taking the course would result in lower eco-anxiety and higher well-being in service of increased capacity for meaningful and values-directed living in the context of a changing climate. Using a randomized crossover repeated measures research design to assess pre and post effects, quantitative results indicated that participating in the course led to significant reductions in eco-anxiety and improvements in hedonic well-being, but did not lead to significant improvements in overall well-being, pro-environmental values or behavior. Qualitative results indicated that participants found the course engaging and useful. Future directions for research on sustainable well-being courses are discussed.

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