Hopelessness in Our Times: Young People, Adults and Why So Many Feel Powerless
There’s something heavy in the air these days. Maybe you feel it too: watching climate change intensify, reading about social injustice, seeing governments stall when pressure mounts, seeing capitalism’s gap between rich and poor widens while suffering deepens. It’s easy to feel powerless—that all your efforts are merely drops in a vast, unchanging ocean.
No? just me? (Insert awkward silence o_o )
Well, I wondered what’s going on under the surface, what research tells us, and what can shift this sense of helplessness? That’s what I want to explore today.
What the Research Tells Us
Recent studies show that feelings of hopelessness aren’t just philosophical— they correlate strongly with anxiety, depression, and reduced wellbeing, especially among young people.
A systematic review of eco-anxiety (anxiety or distress about climate change) found that among over 45,000 adults, higher levels of worry about climate change were positively correlated with symptoms of psychological distress, depression, anxiety, and stress.
In adolescents aged 15-19, climate change concern was linked with worse psychological distress and more negative outlooks for the future.
Emotional problems in adolescents (anxiety, hopelessness, sadness) have been rising, driven by inequality, school pressure, family stress, and societal messages about the environment and justice.
Research into coping highlights how meaning, connection, and self-efficacy can buffer against despair.
Why Hopelessness Has Become So Widespread
From my work and from what these studies are showing, there are a few overlapping currents pushing many into hopelessness:
Scale feels overwhelming – Individual efforts feel like small ripples against global tides.
Visibility of failure, invisibility of progress – Media highlights disaster and injustice, rarely incremental change.
Uncertainty + lack of control – When the future feels unstable, planning ahead seems impossible.
Cultural messages of responsibility in impossible systems – Capitalism frames systemic crises as individual failings.
Isolation – Without space to share grief, fear, or anger, despair ferments and grows.
When Power Feels Corrupted
One of the hardest parts of living in this era is witnessing people who embody greed, cruelty, or disregard for others rise to the highest levels of influence. When those in positions of power openly display values that run counter to fairness, justice, and care, it can feel like the very idea of “good” leadership is collapsing. I don’t need to name names here…
Psychologists sometimes describe this as a form of moral injury—the distress we feel when those in authority betray the values we expect them to uphold. For many, seeing injustice rewarded or blatant misconduct overlooked intensifies a sense of hopelessness. The thought comes: “If people like that succeed, what hope is there for honesty, compassion, or fairness?” Or worse, “Maybe I should drop these values and become more dishonest, greedy, and selfish?”
The impact isn’t just political; it’s deeply personal. It can erode trust in institutions, make activism feel pointless, and leave people withdrawing from civic life altogether. That withdrawal may bring temporary relief, but over time it feeds the very helplessness that drives despair.
What Hopelessness Looks Like
To name what it can feel like (because naming is part of healing):
Disengagement from the future (“What’s the point?”)
Struggling to set or pursue goals
Exhaustion from caring (“burnout” or “eco-fatigue”)
Withdrawal from activism or interests
Anxiety, guilt, grief, shame—often layered on each other
What Helps: Evidence-Based Steps Toward Hope & Agency
Research and clinical practice both suggest practical steps that can help move through despair. I’ve used the format here of;
Strategy
What it does…
How to begin…
Values clarification
Helps you reconnect with what truly matters to you—not what society says matters
Spend 10 min writing or talking about what you deeply want your life to stand for (connection, justice, creativity, kindness, etc.)
Small, values-aligned action
Builds self-efficacy; shows you can influence something
Join a local group, volunteer, change one habitual behaviour, even something small in your community or family
Meaning-centered coping
Balances anxiety with meaning, purpose, connection
Reflect on stories, art, connection; help someone else; gratitude routines
Community & collective action
Connects you with others, reduces isolation; systems change comes through many hands
Find groups with shared values; get involved in policy, advocacy, or local environmental / justice work
Regulating exposure to media
Reduces overwhelm; allows breathing space
Limit doom-scrolling; select trusted sources; set times when you consume news
Self-compassion + therapy
Allows rest, acknowledges pain without judging yourself, supports mental health
Be kind to yourself; talk to therapist about existential worries; use grounding, mindfulness, creative expression
What We Can Do as a Society
While personal action is powerful, we also need systemic shifts:
Governments integrating mental health into climate and social policy.
Schools giving space for discussions about climate and justice grief.
Communities fostering cohesion and collective resilience.
Policy that genuinely addresses inequality and corporate accountability.
Hope Doesn’t Mean Ignoring Reality
Hope is not toxic positivity or denial. It’s holding the reality of injustice and threat alongside the choice to still live in alignment with your values. It’s carrying grief and outrage and deciding what you will invest in—kindness, fairness, community—even when leadership feels corrupted.
Final Thoughts
Yes, the world feels bleak in many ways. But despair doesn’t have to be the endpoint. When you name what hurts, reconnect with what matters, and act in ways aligned with your values, hope returns in small but powerful ways. It’s not a destination—it’s a process, one step at a time.