‘Keeping ‘cool’ in a heatwave: A psychologically informed environment (PIE) reflection on the weather’.
15.07.2022: As I write this week’s PIE blog, as the lead for Psychologically Informed Environments (PIE), at the national youth homeless charity — Centrepoint, I am (like many others in the UK this week) struggling with the current heatwave (c.f. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-62117348). This has made travelling to different supported accommodation services to deliver Reflective Practice on London’s public transport system a bit of a challenge! I am realising that we are not set up for extreme weather in this country and I am sure that I have arrived at a few places somewhat of a hot mess! I have also found that the heat is causing me to be more exhausted, and therefore it is even more important than usual to ensure that we are looking after ourselves (e.g. keeping hydrated, resting in the shade or inside cool spaces whenever possible, and pacing ourselves throughout the day). Consequently, it has been hard to avoid reflecting this week on the weather and its impact on our psychological well-being, and what this might mean for a PIE approach within the homeless sector.
Arguably, one of the stereotypical characteristics of being British is our obsession with the weather! The weather is a subject that we talk about endlessly in ‘small talk’ and think about within our daily lives. I have been joking with our Ukrainian guests this week that as a country, we really only cope with mild rain as when it gets too hot or too cold, we start to struggle! How often does our public transport system experience issues if there is ‘too much snow’ or as this week, too much heat? How often can the weather even change in one day, and therefore we need to take an umbrella with us even if the day starts sunny? Perhaps this is something we are used to if we are born and raised here, or have been here for some time but for our guests, the variability in just the few months that they have been with us has been a surprise to them.
Moreover, psychologists know that the external weather can affect how we feel internally as well as how we behave (c.f. https://thepsychologist.bps.org.uk/weather-and-behaviour). In the most extreme weather conditions (e.g. flooding and droughts), research has found elevated levels of anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorders or PTSD as well as increases in aggressive behaviour and domestic violence (Watts et al, 2015). There is also evidence that exposure to extreme heat may lead to increased use of alcohol, increased hospital and emergency room admissions as well as sadly, increases in suicide rates (https://health2016.globalchange.gov/). Extreme weather can also adversely affect specific vulnerable populations (e.g. children, the elderly and even more economically disadvantaged groups such as the homeless population that may not have access to appropriate accommodation or mitigations within temporary accommodation such as air conditioning).
Temperatures hotter (or colder) than the seasonal average can cause increased levels of illness and death by compromising the body’s ability to regulate its temperature or by causing direct or indirect health complications. For example, the loss of internal temperature control can result in many different illnesses, including heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heat stroke or hyperthermia if too hot, or frostbite and hypothermia if too cold. Extreme temperatures can also exacerbate chronic illnesses such as cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, cerebrovascular disease and diabetes. This can be a significant issue for a homeless population, who are more exposed to and therefore more vulnerable, to any extreme temperatures.
However, the weather actually does not have to be ‘extreme’ to have an impact on us. How much better might our mood be when the sun is shining or how much more effort does it take us to get motivated when the sky is grey and it is raining? Of course, as humans our environment will affect us. Perhaps as we disconnect from the natural environment in our increasingly urban lifestyles we can try to ignore this impact, but we are part of the wider ecological system and it is one of the reasons that psychologists are also concerned about issues such as climate change (c.f. https://thepsychologist.bps.org.uk/volume-22/edition-2/climate-change-psychologys-contribution).
The relationship between weather and our psychological well-being is nevertheless complicated as it depends on our individual characteristics to some degree. Some of us prefer warmer weather; some of us prefer different seasons. Our personality type can also influence how we manage changes in the weather. For example, an interesting research study by Spasova (2011) found that individuals who were measured to be more emotionally stable on an assessment of ‘neuroticism’ were found to be more resistant to any influence of weather on their emotions whilst those who were measured to be more emotionally unstable were more impacted by changes in the weather.
The influence of weather upon our psychological state is also influenced by how we interact with the weather; in other words, how much time we spend outside. In addition, there are seasonal variations. Keller et al (2005) found that warmer weather in spring increased mood, memory and cognitive flexibility but not in summer wherein hotter weather was associated with lower mood and slower cognition (or thinking processes). It is possible that more pleasant weather improves our mood in spring because we have been deprived of it during the winter months, but too much starts to negatively affect us as we move into summer. Psychologists know that a lack of sunlight, disruption to our circadian rhythm, overproduction of melatonin and a lack of Vitamin D can cause ‘Seasonal Affective Disorder’, wherein an individual can experience depressive symptoms as we move into Autumn / Winter, and only experience improvements once Spring / Summer arrives. In its most mild form, this we all know this as the ‘Winter Blues’.
Therefore, we might also assume that warmer weather is always a ‘good thing’. However, some psychology research has found that colder temperatures are actually better for our psychological well-being as we are more productive and there are less negative mental health outcomes (Mullins & White, 2019). Warmer weather does not only influence our mood and cognitive abilities, but it can also influence our behaviour. Psychological research has found that there is an increase in aggression and violence in very hot weather. For example, Anderson & DeLisi (2011) looked at US crime data from 1950–2008 and found that individuals are more likely to be aggressive when exposed to excessive heat. Even controlling for factors like age, race and poverty, US cities in warmer regions had higher crime rates than those located in cooler regions. Another study by Reeping & Hemenway (2020) found a significant association between daily shootings in Chicago, US and higher temperatures between 2012 and 2016. Of course, thankfully, most of us coping with the current UK heatwave are not likely to commit a violent crime(!), but we can probably all agree that we are more irritable and prone to frustration when we are feeling too hot. As a result, we may therefore expect to see an increase in challenging behaviours from the homeless young people we support within our supported accommodation services at the current time.
So if we are aware that the weather can have such a clear effect upon our psychological (and physical) well-being, what are the implications for this on how we can work in the homeless sector? What would be a psychologically informed approach as a result? Firstly, it is important to consider those homeless young people that are sleeping rough at the current time. As noted above there are increased risks for individuals sleeping rough in the current extreme hot weather in the UK this week and in response several local councils in the South of England may need to activate their Severe Weather Emergency Protocol (SWEP) to ensure safe shelter is available for people whilst we are experiencing this extreme heat. Outreach teams may need to be more active to locate rough sleepers and offer them appropriate respite shelter from the sun.
As Petra Salva, Director of Rough Sleeper, Westminster & Migrant Services at St Mungo’s has noted; “sleeping rough is always harmful and dangerous, but in particular when there are extreme changes to the weather like this week where we expect days of soaring temperatures. This heat can be life-threatening, especially when the temperatures remain high for prolonged periods … causing a number of severe health illnesses such as; heat cramps, heat rash, heat exhaustion and heat stroke’. Consequently, as a result homeless charities are asking “members of the public to take action if they see someone sleeping rough, by offering sun-cream or some water. Anyone concerned about a person in this weather can contact Street Link (https://www.streetlink.org.uk/) so that they can be connected with local support. In an emergency people should call 999 when a person’s safety is at risk” (c.f. https://www.bigissue.com/news/housing/how-can-i-help-homeless-people-during-a-uk-heatwave/).
For those individuals who are homeless or in temporary or supported accommodation and relying on welfare benefits, they may not have sufficient funds to buy expensive sun creams. This makes it important that we ensure that the homeless young people we support have access to these. As per a PIE, we also need to consider our physical environment, as this will impact on our psychological well-being. For example, do we have adequate ventilation in services, or perhaps fans or mobile air conditioning units? Are our services pleasant and cool places for those that live and work in them? If not, what might we need to do to try to mitigate as much as possible against the extreme heat? As we move forward with new builds / projects — are we considering that it is more rather than less likely (as a result of climate change) that we will be experiencing further heatwaves in future summers and how do we factor this in to any renovations or building projects?
As also highlighted above, we know that the weather affects our psychological well-being. Therefore, it is even more important than usual to be checking in regularly with the homeless young people we support. How the extreme heat effecting them? Can we check their basic needs are being met such as appropriate food and water, summer clothing and footwear? Are they managing to sleep well, and if not what might be the impact of this (e.g. increase in irritability and frustration)? How do we view and manage any increase in challenging behaviours as a result? How can we keep our ‘cool’ in these situations, using all our de-escalation skills, empathy and understanding? Moreover, are there any young people who are already struggling with their mood, motivation or concentration that might need some extra support at the current time, and what can we therefore do to help them?
Finally, it is of course also important to look after ourselves in this weather. As well as the obvious need to keep in the shade and stay hydrated, are there are other things we can do to manage the next few days. If we are able to restructure our working day, is it more effective to work at different times and rest during the hottest (and arguably least productive) part of the day? Can we recognise that we might struggle a bit and ‘be kind’ to ourselves, the homeless young people we support and our colleagues in terms of our expectations of ourselves and each other? Perhaps we can consider what do we need to prioritise and what can wait? Moreover, if we notice a change in our psychological well-being, what self-care strategies or support networks will help us to cope with this? Hopefully, we can continue to keep a psychologically informed perspective on this current weather, recognising how this heatwave might affect us and those around us, particularly those that homeless, so that we can keep psychologically ‘cool’ over the next few days until this heatwave finally passes…
