Sleep disturbance as a predictor of climate anxiety among youth: A two‐wave longitudinal study

Abstract Background Climate anxiety is prevalent among youth and is closely associated with sleep disturbance. This study aimed to examine the cross‐sectional and longitudinal associations between sleep disturbance and climate anxiety in a large cohort of college students. Methods A two‐wave longitudinal survey was conducted in Hunan and Shanxi provinces in China. A total of 11,010 college students completed the 6‐month follow‐up survey. The Youth Self‐Rating Insomnia Scale and the Climate Change Anxiety Scale were used to assess sleep disturbance and climate anxiety, respectively. A series of logistic regression analyses were performed to examine the associations between each sleep‐related variable and climate anxiety. Results At T 1 and T 2, 8.4% and 11.3% of college students reported climate anxiety, respectively. Sleep disturbance and sleep loss at T 1 were significantly associated with an increased risk of climate anxiety at T 2 after adjusting for covariates. Furthermore, sleep disturbance and sleep loss also predicted the new onset and persistence of climate anxiety. Conclusions Study findings provide evidence that sleep disturbance was not only cross‐sectionally and longitudinally associated with an increased risk of climate anxiety but also linked to its trajectories. Addressing sleep problems may serve as an effective strategy for alleviating climate anxiety among youth.