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Research Article|Articles in Press

Parental Concerns About Climate Change in a Major United States City

  • Marie E. Heffernan
    Correspondence
    Address correspondence to Marie E. Heffernan, Mary Ann & J. Milburn Smith Child Health Outcomes, Research and Evaluation Center, Department of Pediatrics, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, 225 E Chicago Ave, Box 157, Chicago, IL 60611
    Affiliations
    Department of Pediatrics (ME Heffernan and MM Davis), Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL

    Mary Ann & J. Milburn Smith Child Health Outcomes, Research, and Evaluation Center (ME Heffernan and CG Menker), Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, IL
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  • Carly G. Menker
    Affiliations
    Mary Ann & J. Milburn Smith Child Health Outcomes, Research, and Evaluation Center (ME Heffernan and CG Menker), Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, IL
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  • Anne Bendelow
    Affiliations
    Data Analytics and Reporting (A Bendelow and TL Smith), Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL
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  • Tracie L. Smith
    Affiliations
    Data Analytics and Reporting (A Bendelow and TL Smith), Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL
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  • Matthew M. Davis
    Affiliations
    Department of Pediatrics (ME Heffernan and MM Davis), Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL
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Published:March 03, 2023DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2023.02.015

      Abstract

      Objective

      To examine climate change concerns among parents in Chicago, a large and diverse urban setting that experiences climate change-related weather events and rising water levels which have the potential to affect more than 1 million children living in the city.

      Methods

      We collected data through the Voices of Child Health in Chicago Parent Panel Survey from May to July 2021. Parents indicated their personal level of worry about climate change, concern about the impact of climate change on themselves and their families, and how well they understood the issue of climate change. Parents also provided demographic information.

      Results

      Parents reported high levels of concern about climate change in general and specifically about the impact on their families. Logistic regression indicated that parents who were Latine/Hispanic (vs White) and those who felt they understood climate change well (vs less well) had higher odds of reporting high levels of concern. Parents with some college (vs high school education or below) had lower odds of high concern.

      Conclusions

      Parents indicated high levels of concern about climate change and its potential impact on their families. These results can help inform pediatricians’ discussions with families about child health in the context of a changing climate.

      Keywords

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