Practice Matters: Pro-environmental Motivations and Diet-Related Impact Vary With Meditation Experience
Ute B. Thiermann, William R. Sheate, A. Vercammen
Frontiers in Psychology December 16, 2020 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.584353 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 300 |
| Population | Individuals with varying meditation experience |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Advanced meditators showed significantly more environmental concern, lower animal-protein-related greenhouse gas emissions, land occupation, and water use, and more integrated motivation toward the environment than non-meditators. The effect of mindful compassion practice on emissions was partially mediated by connectedness with nature and integrated motivation. |
Abstract
Mindfulness has emerged as a potential motivator for sustainable lifestyles, yet few studies provide insight into the relationship between mindfulness practice levels and individual engagement in pro-environmental behaviors. We also lack information about the significance of meditators’ behavioral differences in terms of their measurable environmental impact and the motivational processes underlying these differences in pro-environmental performance. We classified 300 individuals in three groups with varying meditation experience and compared their pro-environmental motivations and levels of animal protein consumption. Exceeding prior attempts to compare high-impact behaviors of mindfulness practitioners and non-practitioners, we created the most detailed classification of practice engagement by assessing frequency, experience and type of meditation practice. This nuanced view on mindfulness practice reveals that advanced meditators, who reported high levels of connectedness with nature (CWN), subjective happiness and dispositional mindfulness showed significantly more concern for the environment. They also demonstrated the lowest levels of greenhouse gas emissions, land occupation and water use related to their animal-protein consumption. This study is the first to follow a self-determination theory perspective to deepen our understanding of the motivational differences between meditator groups. We revealed that advanced meditators reported significantly more integrated motivation toward the environment than non-meditators. We also provided preliminary evidence for a new theoretical framework suggesting that experiential strategies such as mindfulness practices could strengthen the relational pathway of pro-environmental behaviors. Using sequential mediation analysis, we confirmed that the negative effect of mindful compassion practice on greenhouse gas emissions from animal-protein consumption is partially mediated by CWN and integrated motivation toward the environment. While our study does not support assumptions of causality, it shows that much can be learned by studying the motivations of advanced meditators for maintaining high levels of pro-environmental behavior.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness Undergraduate students | 2006 | Observational cohort | |
| Effectiveness of a meditation-based stress reduction program in the treatment of anxiety disorders Patients with generalized anxiety disorder or panic disorder with or without agoraphobia | 1992 | Observational cohort | n = 22 |
| Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Participants with extensive Insight meditation experience and matched controls | 2005 | Observational cohort | n = 20 |
| Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Experienced meditators and matched meditation-naive controls | 2011 | Observational cohort | |
| Long-term meditators self-induce high-amplitude gamma synchrony during mental practice Long-term Buddhist practitioners and controls | 2004 | Observational cohort |
Citations in the library
Cited by 6
- Effects of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction on Blood Pressure, Mental Health, and Quality of Life in Hypertensive Adult Women: A Randomized Clinical Trial Study. The journal of Tehran Heart Center July 1, 2022
- From connection to conservation: Nature‐based mindfulness as a pathway to pro‐environmental behaviors Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being September 9, 2026
- Can Meditation Help the Environment? Examining Cross-Sectional Associations Between Meditation Goals and Outcomes in Experienced and Novice Meditators Mindfulness December 1, 2025
- Mindfulness and sustainable diets: a meta-analysis and CO2 emission savings scenarios. Nutrition Journal July 6, 2026
- Mindful Eco-Wellness: Steps Toward Personal and Planetary Health. Global Advances in Integrative Medicine and Health 2024
and 1 more in the library
Cites 12
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- The Way Forward in Mindfulness and Sustainability: a Critical Review and Research Agenda Journal of Cognitive Enhancement July 2, 2020
- Mindfulness and Loving-Kindness Meditation Psychological Reports January 6, 2017
- What Is Meditation? Proposing an Empirically Derived Classification System Frontiers in Psychology October 15, 2019
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