Climate change is rapidly increasing the frequency, intensity, and duration of wildfires, resulting in stress, anxiety, and trauma exposure for individuals in affected communities. In addition, even brief exposure to harmful fine particulate matter (PM2.5) from wildfires has serious negative health consequences and contributes to unique psychosocial challenges (e.g., social isolation, difficulty accessing needed mental health services). This presentation will examine psychological impacts of wildfire and wildfire smoke exposure, including acute and long-term mental health impacts. We will review extant literature and recent empirical findings to inform best practices for building resilience in the wake of wildfires. Specifically, we will share findings from a recent study we conducted to investigate associations between wildfire exposure and mental health among California households. This study integrated high-resolution satellite data on wildfire points, exposure to wildfire smoke (i.e., harmful levels of PM2.5), and symptoms of anxiety and depression. Using two-way fixed effect logit models, we show that exposure to >10 days of elevated wildfire-driven PM2.5 nearly doubles a household's probability of having a family member experience symptoms of depression and anxiety in the following year.


Given these impacts, we will next share a conceptual framework of psychological resilience that has been adapted for wildfire response. The framework highlights the importance of understanding pre-existing vulnerabilities of individuals and communities and promoting socio-ecological factors that facilitate individual and community resilience. Resilience promotion is conceptualized as mobilizing three key resource domains: 1) individual assets (e.g., awareness and knowledge, motivation for response), 2) interpersonal/family resources (e.g., social supports, communication), and 3) community resources (e.g., social services, neighborhood assets). We will discuss how this resilience framework can be adapted to the unique nature of wildfire disaster, and we will describe practical strategies across these three resilience domains that can be used to support post-wildfire psychological disaster response.