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RESEARCH ARTICLE

Psychological effects of climate change media exposure on climate change worry: The moderating role of coping strategies in Italian emerging adults

Giorgio Maria Regnoli1 ,  Gioia Tiano1 ,  Barbara De Rosa1*
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1 Department of Humanities, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
HPR, 026170085 https://doi.org/10.36922/HPR026170085
Received: 22 April 2026 | Revised: 15 June 2026 | Accepted: 16 June 2026 | Published online: 8 July 2026
© 2026 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution -Noncommercial 4.0 International License (CC-by the license) ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ )
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Abstract

Background: Climate change is one of the most pressing global challenges of the 21st century. Climate-related information is widely disseminated through mass media, particularly social media. Exposure to such content can elicit emotional responses and contribute to climate-change–related psychological states, including eco-worry.

Objective: This study aims to investigate exposure to climate-change–related information among Italian emerging adults, focusing on information sources, related emotional responses, and the moderating role of problem-focused, de-emphasizing/avoidant, and meaning-focused coping strategies in the relationship between media exposure and eco-worry.

Methods: A total of 642 Italian emerging adults aged 18–30 years (mean = 22.84, standard deviation = 3.06; 62.1% female) completed self-report measures assessing exposure to climate-change–related information, information sources, emotional reactions, eco-worry, and coping strategies. Moderation analyses were conducted to evaluate the protective and risk roles of different coping strategies.

Results: Exposure to climate-change–related information predominantly elicited negative emotions, particularly anger, guilt, and helplessness, whereas positive emotions were less frequent. Participants generally perceived climate change information as broad and generic, with social media emerging as the primary information source. Compared with traditional media, social media exposure was associated with higher levels of eco-worry and negative affect. Problem-focused and meaning-focused coping strategies attenuated the relationship between information exposure and eco-worry, whereas de-emphasizing and avoidant coping strategies strengthened this association.

Conclusion: The findings highlight the role of media exposure in shaping the psychological impact of climate change in the Italian context. They also provide support for interventions promoting adaptive coping strategies and suggest directions for future research.

Keywords
Climate change
Media information exposure
Climate-change worry
Negative affects
Coping strategies
Emerging adults
Mental health
Funding
None.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare they have no competing interests.
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