Mindfulness training reduces the preference for proenvironmental outcomes
Abstract Theoretical accounts posit that mindfulness promotes proenvironmental behavior. While this claim is supported by correlational findings, past intervention studies provided no evidence that enhancing mindfulness increases self-report measures of proenvironmental behavior. Here, we tested whe...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2024-11-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-79137-0 |
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| _version_ | 1846147884282544128 |
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| author | Zarah Le Houcq Corbi Kathrin Koch Britta Hölzel Alexander Soutschek |
| author_facet | Zarah Le Houcq Corbi Kathrin Koch Britta Hölzel Alexander Soutschek |
| author_sort | Zarah Le Houcq Corbi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Theoretical accounts posit that mindfulness promotes proenvironmental behavior. While this claim is supported by correlational findings, past intervention studies provided no evidence that enhancing mindfulness increases self-report measures of proenvironmental behavior. Here, we tested whether a 31-day mindfulness intervention strengthens preferences for proenvironmental outcomes with decision tasks involving real conflict between participants’ selfish interests and beneficial consequences for the environment. To unravel the psychological mechanisms underlying the impact of mindfulness on proenvironmental behavior, we assessed the impact of mindfulness training on prosociality and future orientation. Contrary to our hypotheses, the mindfulness intervention reduced instead of increased preferences for proenvironmental and prosocial outcomes, whereas no effects were observed on future orientation. Baseline preferences for proenvironmental and prosocial outcomes (and the intervention effects on them) were correlated, providing empirical evidence for a link between proenvironmental behavior and prosociality. Together, the current data suggest that the relationship between mindfulness and proenvironmental behavior as well as prosociality may be more complicated than assumed in the literature. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-602ab2925d84433aa5b4ba7e9588175c |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-11-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-602ab2925d84433aa5b4ba7e9588175c2024-12-01T12:20:31ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222024-11-0114111510.1038/s41598-024-79137-0Mindfulness training reduces the preference for proenvironmental outcomesZarah Le Houcq Corbi0Kathrin Koch1Britta Hölzel2Alexander Soutschek3Department of Psychology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität MünchenDepartment of Neuroradiology, Technical University of MunichDepartment of Neuroradiology, Technical University of MunichDepartment of Psychology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität MünchenAbstract Theoretical accounts posit that mindfulness promotes proenvironmental behavior. While this claim is supported by correlational findings, past intervention studies provided no evidence that enhancing mindfulness increases self-report measures of proenvironmental behavior. Here, we tested whether a 31-day mindfulness intervention strengthens preferences for proenvironmental outcomes with decision tasks involving real conflict between participants’ selfish interests and beneficial consequences for the environment. To unravel the psychological mechanisms underlying the impact of mindfulness on proenvironmental behavior, we assessed the impact of mindfulness training on prosociality and future orientation. Contrary to our hypotheses, the mindfulness intervention reduced instead of increased preferences for proenvironmental and prosocial outcomes, whereas no effects were observed on future orientation. Baseline preferences for proenvironmental and prosocial outcomes (and the intervention effects on them) were correlated, providing empirical evidence for a link between proenvironmental behavior and prosociality. Together, the current data suggest that the relationship between mindfulness and proenvironmental behavior as well as prosociality may be more complicated than assumed in the literature.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-79137-0Proenvironmental behaviorMindfulnessDelay discountingSocial discountingDrift diffusion model |
| spellingShingle | Zarah Le Houcq Corbi Kathrin Koch Britta Hölzel Alexander Soutschek Mindfulness training reduces the preference for proenvironmental outcomes Scientific Reports Proenvironmental behavior Mindfulness Delay discounting Social discounting Drift diffusion model |
| title | Mindfulness training reduces the preference for proenvironmental outcomes |
| title_full | Mindfulness training reduces the preference for proenvironmental outcomes |
| title_fullStr | Mindfulness training reduces the preference for proenvironmental outcomes |
| title_full_unstemmed | Mindfulness training reduces the preference for proenvironmental outcomes |
| title_short | Mindfulness training reduces the preference for proenvironmental outcomes |
| title_sort | mindfulness training reduces the preference for proenvironmental outcomes |
| topic | Proenvironmental behavior Mindfulness Delay discounting Social discounting Drift diffusion model |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-79137-0 |
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