How to encourage well-being with reminders interventions: A field experiment on food waste separation and composting behaviors

Abstract

Although well-being is a fundamental human goal, few studies have clarified the causal relationship between well-being and waste separation, which strongly affects sustainable development. We propose that, assuming humans’ innate affinity for nature (the biophilia theory), waste separation would be conducive to a sense of life meaning and well-being. To test this hypothesis, we systematically investigate how food waste separation and composting behaviors affect subjective well-being and meaning in life in a longitudinal field experiment. 226 valid residents were randomized into intervention (n = 113) or control (n = 113) groups. The participants in the intervention group were provided informational reminders (please separate food waste) for 9 weeks, and were asked to record their food waste separation and composting behaviors. We find that community residents who performed food waste separation and composting behaviors (intervention group) had a higher meaning in life and subjective well-being than those who did not (control group). Meanwhile, food waste separation and composting behaviors can promote subjective well-being through the sequential mediation effects of nature connectedness and meaning in life, validating the biophilia theory. These findings not only provide compelling evidence for how waste separation behaviors can promote well-being but also generate important implications for policy-makers and the understanding of pro-environmental behaviors.