The Virtuous Loop Between Happiness and Pro-Environmental Behaviors

Creating a sustainable society necessitates policies that foster human well-being and encourage individuals to engage in pro-environmental behaviors (PEBs) aimed at reducing their environmental footprint. However, the compatibility of these goals remains uncertain. While pro-environmental behavior often correlates positively with individuals’ well-being, the causal relationship between such actions and hedonic well-being (HWB) remains unclear. Similarly, the influence of subjective well-being (SWB) on PEB warrants further investigation. Based on a field experiment, supplemented by online surveys, in which French university students (n=393) could participate in a paid or unpaid volunteer waste collection, or donate to an environmental association, according to random allocation to different treatment groups, we find evidence of a virtuous loop between pro-environmental actions and SWB. Happiness is a determinant of voluntary waste collection participation, but not for paid waste collection or monetary donation. Additionally, participation in waste collection, whether paid or unpaid, significantly increases overall HWB. These results suggest that policies targeting human well-being are likely to encourage voluntary PEB and benefit from a leverage effect, as PEB, in turn, increases human well-being.