Social consequences of planned relocation in response to sea level rise: Impacts on anxiety, wellbeing, and perceived safety
Abstract
Governments globally are adapting to sea level rise through a range of interventions to improve everyday lives of communities at risk. One prominent response is planned relocation, where people and communities are enabled to move from localities exposed to coastal erosion and inundation as a result of sea level rise. Managed retreat has significant social consequences including under reported impacts on health, wellbeing and social identity. Here we adopt wellestablished measures of wellbeing and document the outcomes of planned relocation on wellbeing in the Volta Delta region of Ghana. Data from a bespoke survey for individuals (n=505) in relocated and nonrelocated communities demonstrate that planned relocation negatively impacts wellbeing and anxiety of those relocated when compared to a community that is equally exposed but has not moved. Individuals in the relocated community reported significantly lower levels of overall wellbeing, significantly higher levels of anxiety, and lower perceptions of safety, compared to nonrelocated community members. These outcomes are explained as being related to the disruption of community connection, identities, and feelings of efficacy. Relocated community members reported significantly lower levels of attachment to the local area and home, significantly lower levels of communitybased selfefficacy, and significantly lower levels of overall communitybased identity. The results demonstrate that planned relocation to address sea level rise has multiple social consequences with outcomes for well-being that are not straightforwardly related to risk reduction.
Cite this
APA
Abu, M., Heath, S. C., Adger, W. N., Codjoe, S. N. A., Butler, C., & Quinn, T. (2024). Social consequences of planned relocation in response to sea level rise: Impacts on anxiety, wellbeing, and perceived safety. Scientific Reports, 14(1), 3461. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-53277-9
Harvard
Abu, M. et al. (2024) ‘Social consequences of planned relocation in response to sea level rise: Impacts on anxiety, wellbeing, and perceived safety’, Scientific Reports, 14(1), pp. 3461. doi:10.1038/s41598-024-53277-9.
BibTeX
@article{abu2024social,
author = {Abu, M. and Heath, S.C. and Adger, W.N. and Codjoe, S.N.A. and Butler, C. and Quinn, T.},
title = {Social consequences of planned relocation in response to sea level rise: Impacts on anxiety, wellbeing, and perceived safety},
journal = {Scientific Reports},
year = {2024},
volume = {14},
number = {1},
pages = {3461},
doi = {10.1038/s41598-024-53277-9}
}