Trait Mindfulness and Pro-Environmental Behaviours: The Mediating Role of Eco-Emotions

Climate change and ecological degradation represent profound global challenges, eliciting a wide range of emotional responses that can influence individuals’ engagement in pro-environmental behaviour (PEBs). This cross-sectional study examined the association between trait mindfulness and PEBs, with a focus on the mediating role of eco-emotions, including eco-anxiety, eco-depression, and eco-anger. A total of 259 adults were recruited in central Italy using a non-probabilistic snowball sampling method and completed self-report measures assessing trait mindfulness, eco-emotions, and PEBs. Data were analysed using a parallel mediation model. Results indicated that only eco-anger mediated the association between trait mindfulness and PEBs. Neither eco-anxiety nor eco-depression showed significant indirect effects. These findings suggest that eco-anger represents a distinct emotional pathway through which mindfulness-related regulatory processes can translate into environmentally relevant action, highlighting the differentiated motivational roles of eco-emotions. By clarifying the emotional mechanisms linking trait mindfulness to PEBs, this study provides new evidence contributing to the literature on individual differences, eco-emotions, and environmental psychology. The findings also offer practical implications for developing psychologically informed interventions to promote PEBs by integrating emotional activation with emotion regulation processes.