Study reveals how anxiety over climate change is stopping people having kids

NewsHub 23 April 2021
Anxiety over climate change is prompting more and more people to reconsider having children, a new study has revealed.

Researchers from the University of Arizona interviewed 24 people between 18 and 35 who said climate change played an important role in deciding whether to have kids. They also analysed reader comments on articles about this topic.

The researchers’ findings indicated three key themes were evident in both online comments and interviews: overconsumption, overpopulation, and future uncertainty.

Many participants believed if they had more than two children, it would be problematic and selfish because they felt they would be ‘over-replacing’ themselves or their partner.

Interviewees frequently expressed they would feel guilty or were morally wrong if they had a child in a world with such an uncertain future if climate change remained uncontrolled.

But while many participants were uncomfortable with the climate future, it was balanced with some expressions of hope, the study found.
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