Strong emotional responses to environmental problems are remarkably common. We know people are angry about climate change – but how many?

Our new research surveyed 5,000 Australians and found almost half (49%) are angry about our warming world. So what do people do with their climate anger?

Anger can be a galvanising emotion, spurring us to action. But when faced by a seemingly insurmountable cause, it can also turn into despair.

Our research found responses to climate anger depend on what aspect of the problem people are angry about – and who they feel is responsible.

Emotions differ in how energising they are – in other words, whether they motivate us to act. Anger has been shown to be a motivating emotion.

In our previous research, we found participants who felt more intense anger about climate change were more likely to take part in climate protests and switch to climate-friendly behaviours. Participants with more anger also reported less stress, depression and anxiety.

But not everyone gets angry at the same things.

To study the different kinds of climate anger, we asked a nationally representative sample of more than 5,000 Australian adults how angry they feel about climate change. We also asked about the environmental behaviours they take part in and about their recent experiences with symptoms of depression and anxiety. Just under 50% said they were at least “somewhat” angry.

Next, we asked them why.

Their responses ranged from a few words to long........

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