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Children’s Psychological Reactions to Wildfires: a Review of Recent Literature

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Abstract

Purpose of Review

This review aims to synthesize currently available literature regarding the impact of wildfire on mental health, specifically the psychological reactions of children to wildfires. The information gathered from this review will help health experts understand and address the mental health needs of children during wildfire disasters and may serve as a base for future studies to evaluate evidence-based public health responses to mitigate adverse outcomes.

Recent Findings

The results identified post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, depression, stress, alcohol/substance misuse, hopelessness, low resilience, reduced quality of life, and self-esteem as the psychological conditions manifesting in children and adolescent post-wildfire disaster. PTSD was the most evaluated psychological reaction in the participants (7 out of eight studies).

Summary

This review highlights that deleterious mental health effects, such as PTSD, depression, anxiety, and suicidality, can persist in children for years post-wildfire disaster. Factors such as gender, direct exposure to the wildfire, re-traumatization, and resilience informed or ameliorated the severity of the impact of wildfire on children and adolescents. Our findings further emphasize the need for multi-year funding and programs to support children and adolescents’ mental health, including children with disabilities in the communities that have experienced wildfire disasters.

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Data Availability

All data used can be found in the respective articles which are already available in the various databases searched for the purpose of this review.

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Funding

This study was supported by the Queen Elizabeth II Foundation and the Department of Psychiatry at Dalhousie University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Abbie J. Lane Memorial Building, Dalhousie University, QEII Health Sciences Centre, 5909 Veterans Memorial Lane, 8Th Floor, Halifax, NS, B3H 2E2, Canada

    Medard K. Adu & Vincent I. O. Agyapong

  2. Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2B7, Canada

    Belinda Agyapong & Vincent I. O. Agyapong

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  1. Medard K. Adu
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  3. Vincent I. O. Agyapong
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Correspondence to Vincent I. O. Agyapong.

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Adu, M.K., Agyapong, B. & Agyapong, V.I.O. Children’s Psychological Reactions to Wildfires: a Review of Recent Literature. Curr Psychiatry Rep 25, 603–616 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-023-01451-7

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