"I don't have to suffer just because I'm an activist": The role of humour as an adaptive coping strategy in managing eco-anxiety of climate activists
(2025) In Master Thesis Series in Environmental Studies and Sustainability Science MESM02 20251LUCSUS (Lund University Centre for Sustainability Studies)
- Abstract
- The concept of ‘eco-anxiety’ has increasingly gained traction both in media and academia, with climate activists hypothesised as prone to experiencing it. However, humour has for long been a crucial aspect of social movements, and it holds strong potential in adaptively coping with stressors. Therefore, this thesis aims to describe climate activists’ emotional experiences characterised as eco-anxiety and explore how humour can be used as an adaptive coping strategy to manage eco-anxiety. In-depth semi-structured interviews were held with climate activists in Denmark and Sweden. Resultantly, various eco-emotions are commonly felt, and humour is used more often indirectly than directly to cope. Regardless, emotional experiences are complex,... (More)
- The concept of ‘eco-anxiety’ has increasingly gained traction both in media and academia, with climate activists hypothesised as prone to experiencing it. However, humour has for long been a crucial aspect of social movements, and it holds strong potential in adaptively coping with stressors. Therefore, this thesis aims to describe climate activists’ emotional experiences characterised as eco-anxiety and explore how humour can be used as an adaptive coping strategy to manage eco-anxiety. In-depth semi-structured interviews were held with climate activists in Denmark and Sweden. Resultantly, various eco-emotions are commonly felt, and humour is used more often indirectly than directly to cope. Regardless, emotional experiences are complex, and various limitations and conditionalities about the benefits and morality of humour are emphasised. Future research should aim to delve deeper into both issues to cultivate a more comprehensive understanding of eco anxiety and humour’s role in climate activism. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9194096
- author
- Väänänen, Vappu Jenny Aurora LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- MESM02 20251
- year
- 2025
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- eco-anxiety, climate activism, humour, adaptive coping, qualitative research, sustainability science
- publication/series
- Master Thesis Series in Environmental Studies and Sustainability Science
- report number
- 2025:022
- language
- English
- id
- 9194096
- date added to LUP
- 2025-06-09 09:15:50
- date last changed
- 2025-06-09 09:15:50
@misc{9194096, abstract = {{The concept of ‘eco-anxiety’ has increasingly gained traction both in media and academia, with climate activists hypothesised as prone to experiencing it. However, humour has for long been a crucial aspect of social movements, and it holds strong potential in adaptively coping with stressors. Therefore, this thesis aims to describe climate activists’ emotional experiences characterised as eco-anxiety and explore how humour can be used as an adaptive coping strategy to manage eco-anxiety. In-depth semi-structured interviews were held with climate activists in Denmark and Sweden. Resultantly, various eco-emotions are commonly felt, and humour is used more often indirectly than directly to cope. Regardless, emotional experiences are complex, and various limitations and conditionalities about the benefits and morality of humour are emphasised. Future research should aim to delve deeper into both issues to cultivate a more comprehensive understanding of eco anxiety and humour’s role in climate activism.}}, author = {{Väänänen, Vappu Jenny Aurora}}, language = {{eng}}, note = {{Student Paper}}, series = {{Master Thesis Series in Environmental Studies and Sustainability Science}}, title = {{"I don't have to suffer just because I'm an activist": The role of humour as an adaptive coping strategy in managing eco-anxiety of climate activists}}, year = {{2025}}, }